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Attorney Benjamin J. Harris (Harris)
represented a client in her divorce case.
Harris filed the petition for divorce in May
2015. The adverse party did not have
counsel.
On March 28, 2016, the contested divorce
hearing was held. The Court made findings,
including property division pursuant to a
Stipulation, and granted the divorce. Wis.
Stats. § 767.37(1)(a) required that Harris,
as attorney for the petitioner, file the
findings of fact, conclusions of law, and
judgment of divorce (Judgment) for the Court
to sign within 30 days of the divorce
hearing.
Harris did not timely file the Judgment and
never advised his client that he had failed
to do so.
On August 24, 2016, the Clerk of Circuit
Court sent a letter to Harris to advise him
that the Court had not received the
completed Judgment, reminding him that
pursuant to Wis. Stats. § 767.37(1)(a) the
petitioner is required to file it within 30
days of the final hearing, and informing him
the Court would issue an order to show cause
if he failed to file the final papers by
September 14, 2016. Harris again failed to
do so.
The client did not discover that she was
still married until October 2016, when she
was in the process of selling her
condominium property. According to an
addendum to the Judgment, the client was to
have been awarded all right, title and
interest in her condominium, but Harris had
not filed such document as of the time of
the sale of the condominium. Shortly before
the closing, the client’s realtor called the
client and informed her there was a problem;
because the client was married, her husband
would be entitled to half of the proceeds of
the sale of the condominium, and he would
have to sign off on the sale documents. The
client’s husband refused to do so unless the
client paid him $1,500. The client paid him
and the sale of the condominium proceeded.
On October 19, 2016, the Court scheduled a
review hearing for November 29, 2016. On
October 21, 2016, Harris sent the Court the
Judgment, which the Court modified slightly
and signed on November 2, 2016.
Following the final divorce hearing on March
28, 2016, by failing to file the Judgment on
behalf of his client until October 21, 2016,
Attorney Benjamin Harris violated SCR
20:1.3, which states, “A lawyer shall act
with reasonable diligence and promptness in
representing a client.”
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