The
Supreme Court of Tennessee handed down a temporary suspension
Thursday of Loudon County lawyer Arthur Wayne Henry, who previously
served on the Loudon County E-911 board of directors, from
practicing law.
Henry “has misappropriated funds and poses a threat
of substantial harm to the public,” according to a release from the
Board of Responsibility of the Supreme Court of Tennessee.
The petition to suspend Henry was linked to an
affidavit by Loudon County General Sessions Court Judge Rex Dale.
According to the affidavit, Henry reported to Dale on
the morning of April 17 that he had “taken client funds and used
them for his own personal benefit in the Estate of Cassie B.
Leonard,” which was a probate case opened Nov. 10, 2008.
The case related to a reimbursement claim of
$82,905.31 made by TennCare. The estate was to sell off real estate
to pay administrative expenses, “with the remainder to be paid to
TennCare,” Dale said in the affidavit.
The real estate sold for $25,000 and had
administrative costs of $2,337 and an executor fee of $1,500. A
hearing for closing the estate was set for April 17, on which date
Henry admitted to taking the remaining funds.
“The exact total amount taken by Mr. Henry is not
known at this time, but appears to be between $21,000 and $22,000,”
the affidavit reads. The funds should have gone to pay the TennCare
claim after the payment of administration expenses and fees.
According to Dale’s affidavit, Henry was told that
Dale would report the situation to the Tennessee Board of
Professional Responsibility.
“He agreed to meet with me and our District Attorney
General, Russell Johnson, this coming Friday (April 20), and he
understood that it would be up to General Johnson as to whether
criminal charges against Mr. Henry would be pursued,” Dale said in
the affidavit.
Johnson confirmed in an email correspondence that he
“predicated a (Tennessee Bureau of Investigation) investigation into
the matter,” which is ongoing.
As a result of the temporary suspension, Henry cannot
accept new cases and must cease representing clients by May 26.
“Henry shall not use any indicia of lawyer, legal assistant, or law
clerk nor maintain a presence where the practice of law is
conducted,” according to the release.
Henry is also required to notify all clients being
represented in pending matters, co-counsel and opposing counsel of
the suspension, as well as deliver to clients any papers or
properties to which they are entitled.
On Monday, the state supreme court announced a second
suspension for Henry of one year and one day for ethical misconduct
violations. Conditions for reinstatement include an evaluation by
the Tennessee Lawyers Assistance Program, six hours of continuing
legal education in law practice management and obtaining sufficient
professional liability insurance.
According to Monday’s release, “In one case, Mr.
Henry agreed to accept a settlement offer without advising his
clients. He received a $5,000 settlement check but did not advise
his clients. The settlement check was never cashed. Mr. Henry did
not respond to a show cause order requiring him to show cause why an
order of compromise and settlement had not been entered and the case
was dismissed without prejudice.”
The release also mentions cases in which Henry
“did not diligently pursue a divorce petition” and “did not
diligently pursue a divorce matter.” In both cases Henry is
cited with not adequately communicating with his client.
Henry’s suspension handed down Monday is
unrelated to the previous suspension, which remains in effect.
Both suspensions follow a public censure against
Henry on April 16. According to the censure, “Henry was retained
to represent a client in a domestic case in which the client
desired to relocate her child to another state,” in September
2017. In December, the client discovered that Henry had taken no
action to file a petition to relocate or answer the opposing
party’s petition.
Henry refunded the client’s fees after he was
confronted about inactivity on the case.
This censure is the third for Henry is an many
years. He was publicly censured April 11, 2017, and Jan. 25,
2016. He was also censured in April 2010.
Henry has not returned repeated requests for
comment. The outgoing voice message at his office states, “If
you recently have been trying to contact me, please understand I
was moving my office and AT&T messed up our phone lines for over
a week.”