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Sharon Easley, Easley & Marquis Sharon Easley, Easley & Marquis - News Story Aired on CBS11 TV IN Dallas, TX - "Woman Sues Attorney Who Took Ring As Legal Payment" Plano Texas
A news story which appeared on CBS11 TV in Dallas / Fort Worth on November 1, 2007. Easley was sued by one of her clients and lost in court. Easley had to pay Lanna Woods $21,000. Just another example of the unethical behavior and BS that Easley tries to pull on people.
Are you going to tell me Easley, that as a partner, you do not know what your "Associate Attorneys" are doing and you're always going to make everything somebody elses fault, as you are well known for doing? Come on, how stupid are we? I am an accountant and would be looking at my revenue and accounts receivable and want to know the collection status of this account, especially if I am a partner and "cash is king" in a business. As an attorney, you would alsoneed to have a "Chain of Custody" or "Collateral Agreement" somehwere just like you do for evidence. I would have a partner or senior management acknowledge and approve the collateral transaction before I undertook it, as an associate. How stupid does Easley think we are. Just another one of her "lets play ignorant to cover my a*s and get out of another unethical tactic because I have been caught and/or busted".
by Jack Fink McKINNEY (CBS 11 News)
A North Texas mother said she had to surrender her wedding ring in the middle of a custody battle for her young son.
Lanna Wood claims two days before her trail, her attorney, Sharon Easley, demanded $10,000. If she did not pay, her firm wouldn't represent her in court. Easley is a former candidate for judge in Collin County.
Wood said she told Easley she didn't have the money and that Easley told her to bring something of value, such as a car title or jewelry instead.
"When I told her all I had was my wedding ring, she said that was fine, to bring it in, and to have it there by five o'clock that day or the attorney that was representing me wouldn't be allowed to go to the trail," said Wood.
In addition to giving up her ring, Wood said she had already been paying Easley $300 a month.
Despite the monthly payments, and the ring as collateral, Easley sued her client for $21,000 in back payments.
Wood countersued Easley. "I was completely devastated," said Wood. "I could not believe that she would take my wedding ring after we had such an established relationship, and I was faithfully paying my bill, as I agreed to."
Last week, a Collin County jury ruled Easley improperly kept Wood's ring and owes her $7,000 for it.
Wood said she is devastated her wedding ring is gone forever. "I don't have it to pass down to my children or grandchildren," she said.
Jurors also found Easley owes Wood another $24,000 in damages for unconscionable conduct and for knowingly violating the deceptive trade practices act.
But Easley denies Wood's claim that she demanded her ring as payment. "I think what's really important here is that she's lost her wedding ring, and I'm not happy about that, regardless of how it got to this office, regardless of what happened to it after it got here," said Easley.
According to court testimony, an attorney who worked for Easley accepted the ring from Wood. Easley only found out about the ring this year, four years after Wood turned it over to her firm.
"I personally did not know a ring had been delivered to our office, or anyone in our office, until after we had filed the lawsuit against Ms. Wood," Easley said.
Easley said she will ask the judge to modify the jury's verdict.
There are no disciplinary actions planned against Easley, according to the Texas Bar.
(CBS 11 News)
Planojustice
Little Elm, Texas
U.S.A.