NEW ORLEANS (Louisiana Record) — Voluntarily disbarred Alexandria attorney William Francis Henderson could see his latest request to be admitted denied following a recommendation issued May 29 by a Louisiana Attorney Disciplinary Board (LADB) hearing committee.
Henderson still technically remains a partner with his ex-wife in a small, seldom-active law firm, according to the five-page recommendation by LADB hearing committee No. 6. Rather than dissolving or selling his interest in the firm, Henderson only had his name removed from the account and changed the company's name on its checks, leaving in place his underlying 50-50 ownership in the firm.
"The committee is of the opinion that [Henderson] has not intentionally or maliciously violated this rule, but has more likely negligently violated the rule," the recommendation said. "This negligence is, however, in the opinion of the committee fatal to his request for readmission."
The hearing committee recommended that the Louisiana Supreme Court deny Henderson's petition for readmission.
The recommendation was signed May 24 by committee attorney member Zebulon M. Winstead and was issued five days later. Committee chair Bradley J. Gadel and public member Amy R. Bruce concurred in the recommendation.
Henderson was admitted to the bar in Louisiana on April 10, 1992, according to his profile at the Louisiana State Bar Association's website.
Henderson has been disbarred by consent since July 2010 following his guilty plea in the Rapides Parish Ninth Judicial District Court to felony unauthorized use of property valued in excess of $1,000, a charge that stemmed from his alleged conversion of client funds. His disbarment then was made retroactive to his interim suspension the previous March.
Henderson's petition, filed in October, is the second time in three years that he had requested readmission to the bar in Louisiana. In September 2016, the state Supreme Court unanimously denied a previous petition because Henderson allegedly worked as a paralegal while he was disbarred.