NEW ORLEANS (Louisiana Record) — Disbarred Baton Rouge attorney Clarence T. Nalls Jr. faces possible permanent disbarment following a recommendation issued Oct. 16 by a Louisiana Attorney Disciplinary Board (LADB) hearing committee over allegations he continued to practice law.
In its 11-page recommendation to the Louisiana Supreme Court, LADB hearing committee No. 26 found Nalls violated professional conduct rules regarding unauthorized practice of law and engaging in conduct involving dishonesty, fraud, deceit or misrepresentation. "The recommended sanction in this matter is permanent disbarment," the recommendation said.
Nalls is alleged to have represented a client in a legal tort claim against a Baton Rouge-area restaurant and continued to pursue a client's class action while he was disbarred, according to the recommendation. Both clients subsequently filed complaints with the office of disciplinary counsel
Nalls, "in his efforts to counter the position of the office of disciplinary counsel, contends that he was no longer engaged in the practice of law and that he was under no obligation to clearly convey to the complainants in this matter that he was disbarred," the recommendation said.
Nalls was admitted to the bar in Louisiana on Oct. 8, 1982, according to his profile at the Louisiana State Bar Association’s website.
Nalls' disciplinary history in Louisiana goes back to April 2006 when the state Supreme Court handed down a deferred year-and-a-day suspension subject to two years' conditional probation. In that case the office of disciplinary counsel had begun an investigation into allegations Nalls filed and pursued a frivolous lawsuit on behalf of a client. The high court accepted a petition for consent discipline reached between Nalls and the office of disciplinary counsel.
In January 2009, the high court revoked Nalls' 2006 probation following an office of disciplinary counsel into allegations that Nalls failed to turn over an original will to counsel for the named executor of the will.
In August 2013 an LADB hearing committee recommended Nalls be suspended three years after finding he practiced law and accepted fees from clients while he was suspended. The committee noted in its recommendation that it "struggled mightily with recommending a harsher sanction."
In December 2013 the LADB recommended Nalls be disbarred, and in May 2014 he was disbarred following a Supreme Court order.