Why Are More Lawyers Disappearing?
Do lawyers disappear more than other people?
To some clients, attorneys are notoriously hard to find -- especially when they don't return calls. But it seems like more lawyers are literally disappearing these days.
Perhaps they are so busy or stressed they just have to get away for a while. Then maybe they are running away from life -- or the law.
Lawyers On the Lam
Sven Eric Marshall, an elder law attorney, is probably on the lam. Former clients have sued him for taking almost $1 million, but they can't find him.
"Nowhere to be found," said Michael Anderson, who is representing plaintiffs in one case.
They have tried his phone, his office, his residence -- nobody home. He has been suspended indefinitely, and will likely be charged with crimes to suit.
That's what happened to attorney Eric Conn. He disappeared just before sentencing for conning the government out of $550 million.
Lost and Found Lawyers
Authorities caught up with Conn six months later, and now he's in prison. He told a newspaper he had no choice but to run.
"What does one do when he is forced to reconcile his respect for what he knows is right and his fear of being sexually assaulted or sexually abused?" he said.
But running from clients or the law doesn't explain the disappearance of Ray Gricer. Thirteen years ago, the former district attorney got in his car and didn't come back.
Investigators found his car and what was left of his laptop computer -- the hard drive had been destroyed. They discovered he had searched for "how to wreck a hard drive" on his home computer, but never found him.
Related Resources:
- Suspended Indiana Lawyer Appears to Have Disappeared (ABA Journal)
- Harvard Law Grad Wants to Represent Himself at Murder Trial (FindLaw's Greedy Associates)
- Is Kushner Really Evading Service? (FindLaw's Greedy Associates)