Attorney Suspended for Assisting Direct Mail Estate Planning Marketer

The Supreme Court of Ohio suspends an attorney for two years for preparing estate planning documents for clients solicited by a company that uses direct-mailings to market estate planning services in Ohio and other states. Ohio State Bar Assn. v. Jackel (2008-Ohio-1981, May 1, 2008).

Katherine Jackel, an attorney now living in Michigan but admitted to the Ohio bar in 2004, began accepting clients from United Financial Systems Corporation in 1999. United solicited customers via direct mailings, hired non-lawyers to meet with those who responded to the mailings, and then forwarded relevant financial information to Ms. Jackel, who would draft estate planning instruments based on the information provided. United's non-lawyer employees met with the clients to execute the final documents. The clients submitted payment directly to United, who would then pay Ms. Jackel for her services. (In a case described in the decision, Ms. Jackel was paid $175 while United charged the client nearly $2,500.)

The Ohio State Bar Association charged Ms. Jackel with multiple disciplinary violations, including aiding a non-lawyer in the practice of law, sharing legal fees with a non-lawyer, and knowingly revealing a client's confidences. Ms. Jackel stipulated that her actions violated the disciplinary rules as alleged.

The Supreme Court of Ohio accepts the recommendation of the bar association and suspends Ms. Jackel for two years. The court acknowledges, however, that there is no evidence of a dishonest motive on Ms. Jackel's part, and that once she understood that she was violating the disciplinary rules, she ended her dealings with United.