Summary: A bankruptcy judge ordered the arrest of no-show lawyer a few weeks ago.
A bankruptcy judge in Palm Beach Florida ordered the arrest of a lawyer, hoping to jail her until she complies with a litany of complaints.
Bankruptcy attorney Tina Talarchyk is being held in contempt of court for failing to show up for a show-cause hearing on Tuesday, January 19th, but Talarchyk claims she needed to obtain medical attention for her daughter’s “serious gum condition,” and further, that she thought the hearing was a status conference for which her lawyer could appear in her place.
U.S. Bankruptcy Judge John Olson is concerned with more than that. Olson approved for Talarchyk to receive $12,800 in payment for her work in the case, and she may have received a $50,000 retainer and failed to pay the client back. The judge ordered her four times to produce her accounting of the payment, but Talarchyk ignored the requests.
Thus the judge ordered her arrest, saying, “The incarceration of Talarchyk is intended to be coercive and does not in any way constitute punitive sanction. Talarchyk is in complete possession of the keys to her jail cell.”
Talarchyk’s former bankruptcy partner, David Lloyd Merrill, said in an unsworn court filing that Talarchyk claimed she would tell the court that Merrill took half of the $50,000 retainer for alimony payment to his ex-wife. Merrill called the allegation “nonsense.”
Talarchyk’s lawyer, Douglas Broeker, claimed his client is working to meet each of the judge’s requests.
“This is just a conflict between the judge and Tina,” said Broeker. “Her client in this case wrote an affidavit saying she was completely satisfied with Tina’s work.”
Talarchyk’s motion further claimed the the judge’s orders “give rise to an appearance of partiality, antagonism, vengeance, and other judicially inappropriate conduct,” saying the court has given her critical orders “tagged for publication,” that are “upsetting, intimidating, intrusive, and debilitating.”
The Daily Business Review, for its part, claims Olson is known for sanctioning lawyers.
Source: ABAJournal