AUSTIN: On Oct. 20 the Texas Supreme Court affirmed the decision of the Board of Disciplinary Appeals in the case of Ikechukwu Nweze, an attorney who was disbarred after faking an automobile accident and fabricating medical bills.
Nweze and 6 others were indicted in January 2015 for Insurance Fraud and Engaging in Criminal Activity. In December 2013, Nweze and the others presented United Automobile Services with a claim that two people had been involved in a car wreck. They presented medical bills totalling $56,000, generated by the owner of a medical clinic who was also later indicted for Fraud.
In July 2016, in the Hines County case of The State of Texas v. Ikechukwu Nweze, Nweze pled guilty to Fraud and Engaging in Organized Criminal Activity and was given 4 years community supervision and ordered to surrender his law license, instead of going to prison. Undercover law enforcement officers indicated that Nweze had admitted to them that he planned to continue his activities in the future, and an officer testified that Nweze’s status as an attorney enabled him to get more money from the insurance company.
Nweze appealed the disbarment in May of 2017, asking the Texas Board of Disciplinary Appeals (BODA) for suspension of his law license in lieu of disbarment.
Nweze has a history of prior disciplinary actions. As the Brief filed in August 18 by the Appellee (Commission for Lawyer Discipline) explains about one of those, “Nweze was disciplined for neglecting a legal matter, failing to communicate reasonably, failing to hold client funds in a trust account, and failing to promptly deliver funds to the client. The misconduct resulted in a Judgment of Partially Probated Suspension, two years probated with one year active.”
The August 18 Appellee Brief also notes “The record provides reasonable basis for compulsory discipline. BODA did not abuse discretion in ordering the sanction of disbarment.” It goes on to conclude, “There is more than a scintilla of evidence that Nweze is subject to compulsory discipline. The record passes the substantial evidence test, and Board of Disciplinary Appeals did not abuse discretion in ordering the sanction of disbarment.”
Appellee the Texas Board of Disciplinary Appeals was represented by Linda A. Acevedo, Chief Disciplinary Counsel, and Laura Bayouth Popps and Dean A. Schaffer. Wayne Parris of the Parris Law Group represented Appellant Ikechukwu Nweze.