--- title: In THE MATTER OF JOSEPH HAROLD TURNER, JR. (Two Cases) collection: opinions id: S20Y0947 cite_as: In THE MATTER OF JOSEPH HAROLD TURNER, JR. (Two Cases), 311 Ga. 204 (2021) canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/opinions/S20Y0947 md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/opinions/S20Y0947.md text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/opinions/S20Y0947/text source_url: https://www.courtlistener.com/opinion/10367834/in-the-matter-of-joseph-harold-turner-jr-two-cases/ date: 2021-04-05 status: published corpus_version: opinions-2026-09-14 license: Public record of the Supreme Court of Georgia, via CourtListener and the court's own website; see about.md publisher: Georgia Commons, an independent project of Georgia Civic Data. Not the State of Georgia. Not legal advice. up: https://georgiacommons.org/opinions/2021.md previous: https://georgiacommons.org/opinions/S21Y0684.md next: https://georgiacommons.org/opinions/S21A0118.md index: https://georgiacommons.org/opinions/index.md omitted: opinion extras omitted_chars: 1749 omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/opinions/S20Y0947.md?full=1 docket: S20Y0947, S20Y0948 citation: 311 Ga. 204 court: Supreme Court of Georgia case_type: bar discipline authoring_justice: Per Curiam disposition: Disbarred vote: All the Justices concur word_count: 989 date_filed_source: courtlistener record_source: courtlistener legal_areas: - professional discipline upstream_id: "10367834" summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5 --- # In THE MATTER OF JOSEPH HAROLD TURNER, JR. (Two Cases) Supreme Court of Georgia, docket S20Y0947, S20Y0948, filed 2021-04-05, 311 Ga. 204. ## Opinion 311 Ga. 204 FINAL COPY S20Y0947, S20Y0948. IN THE MATTER OF JOSEPH HAROLD TURNER, JR. (two cases). PER CURIAM. These disciplinary matters are before this Court on two notices of discipline, both of which seek the disbarment of Joseph Harold Turner, Jr. (State Bar No. 719482), who has been a member of the Bar since 1997. The State Bar attempted to serve Turner by mail at the address listed with the Bar, and subsequently at the same address personally, but the sheriff filed a return of service non est inventus. The State Bar then properly served Turner by publication, pursuant to Bar Rule 4-203.1 (b) (3) (ii). Turner failed to file a notice of rejection. Therefore, he is in default, has waived his right to an evidentiary hearing, and is subject to such discipline as may be determined by this Court. See Bar Rule 4-208.1 (b). In Case No. S20Y0947, as deemed admitted, the facts show that Turner was hired by a client in a civil matter, he subsequently settled the claim, and the client executed a release. A check for the settlement funds was issued and deposited by Turner. However, Turner did not disburse the funds to the client or respond to her subsequent requests for information or to those from the Bar’s Office of the General Counsel. Based on this conduct, the Bar concluded that Turner violated the following Georgia Rules of Professional Conduct found in Bar Rule 4-102 (d): Rule 1.3, when he failed to act with reasonable diligence and promptness in disbursing the client’s settlement funds; Rule 1.4 (a), when he failed to respond to the client’s inquiries about her settlement funds and his failure to disburse the funds; Rule 1.15 (I) (c), when he failed to promptly deliver the client’s settlement funds; Rule 8.4 (a) (4), when he wrongfully retained the settlement funds; and Rule 9.3, when he failed to respond to the Office of the General Counsel and the State Disciplinary Board. The maximum sanction for a violation of Rules 1.3, 1.15 (I) (c), and 8.4 (a) (4) is disbarment; the maximum sanction for a violation of Rules 1.4 and 9.3 is a public reprimand. Although the Bar notes that Turner has no prior disciplinary history, it cites no other factors in mitigation of discipline, and it notes in aggravation of discipline that Turner had a dishonest or selfish motive and has considerable experience in the practice of law. In Case No. S20Y0948, as deemed admitted, the facts show that the State Bar received notice from Wells Fargo Bank regarding a withdrawal that caused Turner’s attorney trust account to overdraw. Turner failed to respond to inquiries concerning the overdraft from the Bar’s Overdraft Notification Coordinator or to the Bar’s notice of investigation. Based on this conduct, the Bar concluded that Turner violated Rule 1.15 (I) (a), when he failed to maintain complete records for his trust account; Rule 1.15 (II) (b), when he withdrew funds from his trust account for his personal use, failed to maintain sufficient funds in his trust account to cover maintenance fees, and failed to keep records to reflect at all times the exact balance held for each client or third person; Rule 1.15 (III) (b) (1), when he failed to properly designate his trust account; Rule 1.15 (III) (e), when he failed to respond to the Notice of Investigation and failed to produce information and records at the request of the State Disciplinary Board; and Rule 9.3, when he failed to respond to the Overdraft Notification Coordinator and the State Disciplinary Board. The maximum sanction for a violation of Rules 1.15 (I) (a), 1.15 (II) (b), 1.15 (III) (b) (1), and 1.15 (III) (e) is disbarment; the maximum sanction for a violation of Rule 9.3 is a public reprimand. The Bar notes the same factors in aggravation as it did in Case No. S20Y0947. Having considered the record, we agree that disbarment is the appropriate sanction in this matter. See In the Matter of Berry, 310 Ga. 158, 159 (848 SE2d 71) (2020) (disbarring an attorney who violated Rules 1.2 (a), 1.3, 1.4 (a), 1.5 (b), 1.5 (c) (2), 1.15 (I) (a), 1.15 (I) (b), and 8.4 (a) (4), where the attorney failed to maintain records related to funds that he received for the benefit of his client in connection with the settlement of her personal injury claim and misappropriated the funds that he was supposed to remit to a provider on her behalf); In the Matter of Rambeau, 302 Ga. 367, 369 (806 SE2d 572) (2017) (disbarring attorney who violated Rules 1.2 (a), 1.3, 1.4 (a) (4), 1.15 (I) (a), (c), 1.15 (II) (a), (b), 1.16 (c), and 9.3, where the bank at which the attorney maintained his trust account twice notified the Bar that checks written by the attorney were not paid because his account had insufficient funds to pay the checks and the attorney failed to respond to the Bar’s Overdraft Coordinator’s request for an explanation, the Investigative Panel’s notice of grievance, or the Bar’s notice of investigation); In the Matter of Gorman, 294 Ga. 726, 727 (755 SE2d 746) (2014) (disbarring an attorney who violated Rules 1.3, 1.4, 1.15 (I) (b), 1.15 (II) (b), 8.4 (a) (4), and 9.3, where the attorney received settlement checks related to her client’s personal injury case, deposited the checks into her personal account, and did not pay her client the client’s share of settlement funds). Accordingly, it is hereby ordered that the name of Joseph Harold Turner, Jr., be removed from the rolls of persons authorized to practice law in the State of Georgia. Turner is reminded of his duties pursuant to Bar Rule 4-219 (b). Disbarred. All the Justices concur. Decided April 5, 2021. Disbarment. Paula J. Frederick, General Counsel State Bar, William D. NeSmith III, Deputy General Counsel State Bar, Jenny K. Mittelman, Andreea N. Morrison, Assistant General Counsel State Bar, for State Bar of Georgia. ## Summaries written by Georgia Commons The following was written by claude-sonnet-5 from the opinion above and is not part of the court's opinion. Quote the opinion, not the summary. The Supreme Court of Georgia disbarred attorney Joseph Harold Turner, Jr. after he failed to respond to disciplinary proceedings accusing him of keeping a client's settlement money and mishandling his trust account. ### Plain-language summary The State Bar of Georgia brought two disciplinary cases against attorney Joseph Harold Turner, Jr. In one case, Turner settled a civil claim for a client, deposited the settlement check, but never paid the client her share or answered her questions or the Bar's inquiries. In the other, Wells Fargo Bank alerted the Bar that Turner's attorney trust account had overdrawn, and Turner again failed to respond to the Bar's requests for information. Because Turner could not be personally served, the Bar published notice of the charges as its rules allow, and Turner still never responded, putting him in default and treating the Bar's factual claims as admitted. The Supreme Court of Georgia reviewed the admitted facts, found Turner violated multiple rules governing client funds and cooperation with the Bar, and ordered him disbarred, following similar past cases involving mishandled client money. ### Holding, as summarized The court held that disbarment was the appropriate sanction because Turner, by default, was deemed to have violated multiple rules involving failure to safeguard and disburse client funds, mismanagement of his trust account, and repeated failure to cooperate with Bar investigations. ### Disposition Disbarred. All the Justices concur. ### Why it matters The ruling removes an attorney from practice for mishandling client settlement funds and his trust account, protecting future clients from similar harm and reinforcing that Georgia lawyers who ignore Bar investigations and misuse client money face the most severe professional sanction. > The summarized reasoning, checked quotes, suggested questions, and the CourtListener opinion records (1,749 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/opinions/S20Y0947.md?full=1