(Spirit Lake)– A Spirit Lake attorney has had his license to practice law in the state of Iowa revoked by the Iowa Supreme Court Attorney Disciplinary Board. Documents from the Grievance Commission of the Iowa Supreme Court state that Lonnie Saunders may be eligible for readmission after five years.
The documents state that Saunders was the subject of an investigation by the Attorney Disciplinary Board of the Iowa Supreme Court involving allegations he was “engaged in conduct that violates the Iowa Rules of Professional Conduct”.
The documents site several incidents including one on October 30th, 2014 when Saunders was reprimanded for taking fees in a probate matter before he was entitled to do so. Another is from November 8th, 2018 when Saunders had his license to practice law suspended for 30 days for again collecting fees prematurely in a probate matter. The board also determined Saunders’ conduct in the 2018 matter violated a rule that requires lawyers to deposit fees paid in advance in a trust account and to only withdraw the fees when earned by the lawyer. Saunders was also admonished by the Board in 2018 for allowing a client’s appeal to be dismissed for failure to prosecute.
Documents from the Attorney Disciplinary Board state that Saunders “acknowledged the material facts of the alleged misconduct are true”, and that he consented to the revocation.
