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By Beacon Journal staff
POSTED: 12:52 p.m. EST, Dec 03, 2008
A Stow lawyer accused of excessive billing of an elderly stroke victim, including charging $15,000 for opening her mail, will not lose his law license.
The Ohio Supreme Court suspended the license of Thomas Watkins, a former state legislator and Stow's former law director, for six months. The suspension was stayed so long as Watkins commits no further violations, according to the ruling released today.
Watkins was investigated by the Akron Bar Association, which found he used his client's account to pay himself more than $46,000 in less than two years.
Watkins maintained the billing practices were legitimate. He said the Stow woman received ''an incredible amount of mail'' in the two years he handled her money.
He also said his broken computer is to blame for his failure to provide investigators with proper documentation. The woman was 74 and mentally fit but silenced by a stroke in 2002 when she hired Watkins to handle her financial affairs.
Watkins was given power-of-attorney rights and was named the trustee of her revocable living trust, records show. The agreement with the woman included a provision that Watkins would be paid only for ''extraordinary services.''
His rate was $150 an hour, and Watkins had free rein to write checks to himself from the woman's account.
While working for the woman from June 2002 to February 2004, Watkins billed her $46,294, court records show. His fees included 137 entries at 45 minutes each for ''mail pickup and review'' totaling $15,412.
He also charged her $2,175 to ''research Medicaid qualifications and spend-down limits,'' and $1,200 for the eight hours he said it took to fill out her application for Medicaid.
Watkins billed the woman $1,350 for the time he spent attending two continuing education seminars concerning elderly and Medicare issues in 2002 and 2003.
Relatives say the woman was essentially broke when she died in January 2006 at the age of 78. She had no children.
A cousin accused Watkins of overbilling and not fulfilling his client's wishes for nursing home placement and funeral arrangements.
A Stow lawyer accused of excessive billing of an elderly stroke victim, including charging $15,000 for opening her mail, will not lose his law license.
The Ohio Supreme Court suspended the license of Thomas Watkins, a former state legislator and Stow's former law director, for six months. The suspension was stayed so long as Watkins commits no further violations, according to the ruling released today.
Watkins was investigated by the Akron Bar Association, which found he used his client's account to pay himself more than $46,000 in less than two years.
Watkins maintained the billing practices were legitimate. He said the Stow woman received ''an incredible amount of mail'' in the two years he handled her money.
He also said his broken computer is to blame for his failure to provide investigators with proper documentation. The woman was 74 and mentally fit but silenced by a stroke in 2002 when she hired Watkins to handle her financial affairs.
Watkins was given power-of-attorney rights and was named the trustee of her revocable living trust, records show. The agreement with the woman included a provision that Watkins would be paid only for ''extraordinary services.''
His rate was $150 an hour, and Watkins had free rein to write checks to himself from the woman's account.
While working for the woman from June 2002 to February 2004, Watkins billed her $46,294, court records show. His fees included 137 entries at 45 minutes each for ''mail pickup and review'' totaling $15,412.
He also charged her $2,175 to ''research Medicaid qualifications and spend-down limits,'' and $1,200 for the eight hours he said it took to fill out her application for Medicaid.
Watkins billed the woman $1,350 for the time he spent attending two continuing education seminars concerning elderly and Medicare issues in 2002 and 2003.
Relatives say the woman was essentially broke when she died in January 2006 at the age of 78. She had no children.
A cousin accused Watkins of overbilling and not fulfilling his client's wishes for nursing home placement and funeral arrangements.
Comments
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Akron, OH
Posted 01:15 PM, 12/03/2008
He should go to Congress, then.
Stow, OH
Posted 01:47 PM, 12/03/2008
"He also said his broken computer is to blame for his failure to provide investigators with proper documentation. "
How convenient ,a lawyer that makes $150.00 per hour and says his computer was broke? And then he is found to be over billing and doesn't even have to pay back any money to her estate ? Way to go Supreme court ,lawyers taking care of their own.
Posted 02:03 PM, 12/03/2008
This judge should be ashamed of them self, but that would mean that they attended the ethics course while they were in college.
Posted 02:28 PM, 12/03/2008
137 times opening mail x 45 min x $150 = $15,412.50.
I agree that the amount seems excessive, but why are you hiring a lawyer for $150 an hour to open your mail and why are you having it sent to him in the first place? She knew his rate going into it, so she should've used him wisely.
The relatives that are now complaining could have filled out the Medicare forms and also researched for her saving her money.
akron, oh
Posted 03:34 PM, 12/03/2008
Be nice folks, Watkins has to support his little boyfriend Timmy. Those boyfriends you get online from PA sight unseen don't come without strings.
Posted 04:03 PM, 12/03/2008
Nurses would lose their license for such actions. Why not lawyers? I don't get it.
Posted 04:23 PM, 12/03/2008
because lawyers dont like to hurt other lawyers...
This guy is a crook plain and simple.
Green, OH
Posted 04:34 PM, 12/03/2008
Based on this information, the city of Stow should go back and check their records for irregularities during Mr. Watkin's stint as their city Law Director.
Whatta weasel!
