SPRINGFIELD – Supreme Court Justices decided to review a ruling that Midwest Sanitary Services of Wood River can seek reimbursement of a verdict for punitive damages through a legal malpractice suit.
Rosenstengel
BELLEVILLE – Attorney George Ripplinger has temporarily lost practice privileges at the Eighth U.S. Circuit appellate court, the Missouri Supreme Court, and the U.S. district court for Southern Illinois.
His failure to notify them that the Illinois Supreme Court censured him brought him greater punishment than the conduct that led to his censure.
Chief Missouri Justice George Draper suspended Ripplinger on March 2, and advised him he could apply for reinstatement in a year.
Reciprocal suspensions followed from the Eighth Circuit and the district court, both advising that he could return when Missouri’s court reinstates him.
Chief District Judge Nancy Rosenstengel took action on May 14, finding Ripplinger didn’t report the Illinois censure or the Missouri suspension to her court.
Moore
The Fifth District Appellate Court held that punitive damages are recoverable in legal malpractice cases, concluding that in such circumstances the punitive damages are “compensatory in nature.”
“In short, we agree that punitive damages that are assessed against a litigant as a proximate result of the professional negligence of its attorney are not, in the context of a subsequent legal malpractice action against the attorney, punitive in nature but are, indeed, compensatory in nature and therefore not barred …” wrote Justice James Randy Moore in the ruling.
Moore delivered the April 28 opinion with justices Mark Boie and John Barberis concurring.
Moore
The Fifth District Appellate Court held that punitive damages are recoverable in legal malpractice cases, concluding that in such circumstances the punitive damages are “compensatory in nature.”
“In short, we agree that punitive damages that are assessed against a litigant as a proximate result of the professional negligence of its attorney are not, in the context of a subsequent legal malpractice action against the attorney, punitive in nature but are, indeed, compensatory in nature and therefore not barred …” wrote Justice James Randy Moore in the ruling.
Moore delivered the April 28 opinion with justices Mark Boie and John Barberis concurring.
Ripplinger
EAST ST. LOUIS – Belleville lawyer George Ripplinger entered an appearance for difficult clients in time to rescue them from a $3.7 million default judgment, District Judge Stephen McGlynn ruled on Feb. 18.
McGlynn vacated an entry of default against Tracey Keiser and Robert Frazier of California, and denied a motion to enter judgment.
Two lawyers previously quit defending Keiser and Frazier against fraud and defamation claims due to communication breakdown and failure to pay.
McGlynn wrote, “While the defaulted defendants do not have the best history of timely locating new counsel, there is no evidence that the default was willful or the result of gross negligence.”