ANYONE who's been on the receiving end of a frivolous lawsuit might well believe that a law license in irresponsible hands is akin to a loaded weapon.
That's the case with lawyer George C. Rogers, of Napoleon, who is trying to escape paying this newspaper a court judgment that may amount to as much as $200,000 by declaring bankruptcy.
Mr. Rogers and his then-partner James Godbey sued The Blade in 1990 on behalf of 10 Toledo police officers and two civilians who claimed libel and invasion of privacy after we published a series, "The Secret Files of Internal Affairs," which detailed reports of police misconduct.
The Blade won dismissal of the lawsuit in 1997 with a decision by Judge William Skow declaring it meritless and slamming Mr. Rogers and Mr. Godbey for their improper pursuit of the case. Having spent more than
$1 million in defending the suit, we requested payment to recoup legal fees.
Inexplicably, that request lay dormant on Judge Skow's desk for nearly 12 years, until January of this year, when it was finally granted. Now Mr. Rogers is trying to escape paying the judgment - the specific amount has not been determined - by summarily declaring Chapter 7 bankruptcy.
Because The Blade won the case, readers might well wonder why we continue to seek payment from Mr. Rogers. The answer is that there is an important principle at stake: The law should not allow lawyers who commit acknowledged misconduct to get away with it through delay and questionable maneuvers such as bankruptcy.In addition, the conduct of Mr. Rogers and Mr. Godbey strongly suggests malice on their part. Indeed, if bad faith is not deemed to have motivated their actions, then the concept of bad faith does not exist as a sanctionable offense for lawyers.
Under Ohio law, victims of dishonest lawyers may be reimbursed through the Ohio Supreme Court's Clients' Security Fund. Typically, this fund is tapped when a lawyer embezzles a client's money. But we believe it should be extended to compensate for the costs of frivolous and malicious lawsuits. Perhaps there would be fewer of them.
The manner in which unfounded lawsuits are employed in this litigious era make them no less threatening than a loaded gun, pointed at the head of the defendant. They are meant to intimidate, and it matters little whether the target is an individual or a business.
We would think that lawyers and judges would want to cull such rogues from their ranks. If the lawyers and judges policed themselves more assiduously in such matters, perhaps the public would have more respect for, and confidence in, these self-styled "officers of the court."
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