In the Matter of Anthony O. Van Johnson

Anthony O. Van Johnson, a member of the State Bar of Georgia since 1996, faced two disciplinary complaints. In one, after settling a personal-injury client's case for $9,000, he paid himself a fee and moved the rest of the trust funds to his operating account without telling the client, ignoring the client's repeated requests for money owed to the client and medical providers. In the other, a client paid him $1,500 to file a contempt action and a name-change petition, but he delayed both filings for months and failed to keep the client informed. Van Johnson admitted the misconduct, refunded both clients' fees, and asked the court to accept a petition for voluntary discipline. A Special Master recommended a six-month suspension with conditions for reinstatement, and the State Bar agreed. The Supreme Court of Georgia reviewed the record, agreed with the recommendation, and imposed the six-month suspension along with conditions Van Johnson must meet before returning to practice.

The court held that a six-month suspension from the practice of law, with conditions for reinstatement including a law practice assessment, is the appropriate sanction for Van Johnson's violations of the rules on diligence, communication, and safekeeping client funds, given mitigating factors like restitution, no prior discipline, and personal distress.

The decision shows how Georgia disciplines lawyers who mishandle client trust funds or neglect cases, and it sets conditions Van Johnson must meet before resuming practice. It reassures clients that mishandled settlement money and neglected filings carry real professional consequences.

Petition for voluntary discipline accepted; six-month suspension with conditions imposed

1. The Special Master applied the ABA Standards for Imposing Lawyer Sanctions, a framework courts use to weigh the seriousness of a lawyer's misconduct against mitigating and aggravating circumstances, finding Van Johnson violated rules on diligence (Rule 1.3), communication (Rule 1.4(a)), and safekeeping client property (Rule 1.15), the last of which can carry disbarment as its maximum penalty.
2. In mitigation, the Special Master credited Van Johnson's lack of prior discipline, his cooperative attitude, and the personal and emotional distress he suffered after being falsely accused of sexual assault and later cleared of a related criminal charge.
3. In aggravation, the Special Master noted Van Johnson committed multiple offenses in this case and had substantial experience practicing law, factors that can justify a harsher sanction under the ABA Standards.
4. The Special Master compared this case to prior Georgia disciplinary rulings involving misused client funds, ranging from reprimands to disbarment, and found Van Johnson's situation most similar to two prior cases, In the Matter of Duncan and In the Matter of Terrell, where the court imposed six-month suspensions for lawyers who misappropriated funds but made restitution and had no disciplinary history.
5. Based on that comparison and Van Johnson's full restitution to both clients, lack of prior discipline, documented emotional distress, and early admission of wrongdoing, the Special Master concluded a six-month suspension with reinstatement conditions was the appropriate sanction, and the Supreme Court of Georgia agreed after reviewing the record.

• attorney suspension
• State Bar of Georgia
• client trust funds
• voluntary discipline petition