In re Carris

260 A.3d 1114 (Mem)

IN RE William Tracy CARRIS, Esq. (Office of Disciplinary Counsel)

NO. 21-080

Supreme Court of Vermont.

JULY TERM, 2021

7-20-2021

ENTRY ORDER

¶ 1. Respondent, William Tracy Carris, is a lawyer licensed to practice law in the State of Vermont; his license was suspended by order of this Court, dated May 3, 2021. On that same date, pursuant to Administrative Order 9, Rules 22.B and 28, the Court appointed Attorney F. Rendol Barlow as the trustee over Respondent's law practice. Pursuant to the Court's direction, the trustee and Respondent, through counsel, negotiated and submitted for the Court's review a stipulated order describing the authority of the trustee and the specific expectations and responsibilities of Respondent, including timelines. Disciplinary Counsel does not object to the proposed order. The Court accepts the parties’ proposal and orders the following:

LAW ENFORCEMENT AND BANK PERSONNEL TAKE NOTE:

¶ 2. By further order of the Court, F. Rendol Barlow, Trustee, is granted express authority to:

(A) Enter the physical premises of the law office of William Tracy Carris/Debonis, Wright and Carris, located at 177 Main St., Poultney, VT, for the purposes of accessing client property, files, and other related documents, whether stored electronically or in paper or other form, and return this property, files or related documents to Respondent's clients or their designees or file with courts as appropriate;

(B) Take immediate, exclusive control over all client trust accounts (IOLTA accounts) and title insurance accounts, to include issuing payment from these accounts;

(C) Resolve open matters with title insurance carriers for which Respondent was an agent; and

(D) Access and review any transaction history for all operating accounts titled to Respondent's law firm and to Arbor Title and, if deemed necessary by the Trustee, request that the banks freeze those accounts.

¶ 3. Respondent William Tracy Carris is further ordered to:

(A) Grant the Trustee access to Respondent's office to include, without limitation, any necessary keys, codes and passwords, no later than three business days from the date of this order;

(B) In particular, and without limitation, either personally or through counsel, to appear in person at this location on Wednesday July 21, 2021, at 1:00 PM through 5:00 PM and Friday, July 23, 2021, at 9:30 AM though 5:00 PM. In addition to these two dates and times, Trustee shall have access to this office during normal business hours

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