Biglaw

Fired Biglaw Partner Suspended From Practice Of Law For Approving Settlements Without, You Know, Asking His Client First

This is a pretty basic problem.

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Partners may have wide latitude to run their practice as they see fit, but one of the fundamental principles of legal representation is, you know, that you are representing the interests of a client. So that means — as a bare minimum — lawyers cannot settle cases without approval from their client first. Yes, even when the client is an insurance company.

Asher Brooks Chancey was fired from his position as a partner in the Philadelphia office of Am Law 200 firm Goldberg Segalla in May 2018. This was after he settled cases he was working on without informing the insurer, Knight Insurance Group, that hired his then firm. Chancey self-reported the lapse in judgment to ethics regulators in September 2019 and was temporarily suspended at that time. Now, the the Pennsylvania Supreme Court has weighed in with its final judgment.

Chancey has been suspended, on consent, from the practice of law for three years, retroactive to his temporary suspension in September. In settling on the punishment, the court cited mitigating factors including his self-reporting, lack of other misconduct, remorse, and Chancey’s diagnosis of depression and anxiety.

As reported by ABA Journal, Knight Insurance has filed malpractice claims over the conduct:

Chancey is accused of agreeing to settle auto accident cases in amounts ranging from $35,000 to $1.5 million without informing the Knight Insurance Group. He is also accused of failing to tell the insurance group about scheduled arbitration hearings and default judgments, failing to file court documents, failing to respond to discovery requests, and failing to pursue evidence.

Chancey has not commented on his suspension.

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headshotKathryn Rubino is a Senior Editor at Above the Law, and host of The Jabot podcast. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email her with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter (@Kathryn1).

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