Rock Hill lawyer suspended for misconduct

The S.C. Supreme Court this week suspended a Rock Hill attorney after he admitted to multiple cases of misconduct that included failing to keep clients informed on their cases and not responding to disciplinary notifications.

David B. Sample admitted to misconduct and consented to the court’s nine-month suspension, according to the notice filed Wednesday. Sample must pay costs incurred by the Office of Disciplinary Counsel, complete a legal ethics and practice program within a year before filing a petition for reinstatement and submit quarterly reports from his medical treatment provider for two years.

The suspension stems from multiple cases between 2011 and 2013 in which Sample failed to communicate adequately with clients, comply with their requests for information and respond to multiple demands for information from the state’s Office of Disciplinary Counsel.

In one case, a client retained Sample for representation in a malpractice suit, and Sample filed a notice of intent to sue, the court document states. Sample did not attend a scheduled mandatory mediation, nor did he notify his client about the mediation. He later said he determined he couldn’t go forward with the suit because he couldn’t locate an expert witness who would support his client’s position prior to filing the suit.

In another case, a homeowners association retained Sample to represent it in a suit against the developers of the complex. The court ruled against the homeowners association and instructed Sample to file an appeal, which he did in August 2012, the notice states. However, Sample “failed to keep the (homeowners association) adequately informed regarding the status of the appeal and failed to return telephone calls made by representatives” of the association.

The appeal was dismissed after Sample failed to serve and file the initial brief, according to the document. The homeowners association learned of the dismissal when a member of the community contacted the Court of Appeals.

In nearly all of the 12 matters addressed in the notice of suspension, Sample failed to respond to a notice of investigation from the Office of Disciplinary Counsel. Three clients filed complaints with the disciplinary authority, but the allegations in each were found to be “without merit.”

“This is not characteristic of my legal career since it began in 2005,” Sample said in a statement Friday. “I went through a period of depression starting in 2012 when my father died unexpectedly. My primary concern now is for my clients, many of whom I represent pro bono. I will lose sleep over them. I was very shocked by the sanction itself, given that the Commission on Lawyer Conduct unanimously recommended a reprimand and no suspension.”

This story was originally published February 19, 2016 at 10:50 PM with the headline "Rock Hill lawyer suspended for misconduct."