The Supreme Court of Ohio has indefinitely suspended the law license of Cincinnati  attorney Thomas J. Leksan  for more than 20 violations of state attorney discipline rules arising from his mismanagement of his law office trust account and misappropriation of client funds on deposit in that account between 2009 and 2011.

In a 7-0 decision announced today,  the court adopted findings by the Board of Commissioners on Grievances & Discipline that Leksan admitted using funds he held in trust for clients to pay his own personal and business expenses, depositing  his personal funds into his client trust account, failing to maintain accurate records or perform regular reconciliations to identify amounts he held in trust for specific clients, and repeatedly misappropriating funds being held for current clients to satisfy financial obligations to other clients whose funds he had previously misappropriated.

In adopting the disciplinary board’s recommended sanction of an indefinite suspension with multiple conditions for future reinstatement, the court noted that while the presumptive penalty for misappropriating client funds is disbarment, the board recognized several mitigating factors including the absence of a prior disciplinary record, good-faith efforts by Leksan to make full restitution to his clients, and his ongoing participation in treatment and recovery programs to address diagnosed gambling and alcohol addictions that were causally related to his misconduct.

As conditions for Leksan’s  possible reinstatement after June 13, 2015, the court required that he must submit proof that he has: 1) completed an extra 12 hours of continuing legal education in law-office management, (2) implemented a system to properly manage client funds in his practice, and (3) complied with his recovery contract with the Ohio Lawyers Assistance Program and the recommendations of his treating professionals.

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2012-2055. Disciplinary Counsel v. Leksan, Slip Opinion No. 2013-Ohio-2415.
On Certified Report by the Board of Commissioners on Grievances and Discipline, No. 12-031.  Thomas John Leksan of Cincinnati, Ohio, Attorney Registration No. 0027125, is indefinitely suspended from the practice of law in Ohio.
O’Connor, C.J., and Pfeifer, O’Donnell, Lanzinger, Kennedy, French, and O’Neill, JJ., concur.
Opinion: http://www.supremecourt.ohio.gov/rod/docs/pdf/0/2013/2013-Ohio-2415.pdf

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