Los Angeles attorney Dane Paul Miller has been disbarred following alleged probation violations after mishandling a more than $18,000 medical malpractice case settlement, according to a recent California State Bar filing.
Miller's probation also was revoked and a year of previously stayed suspension was imposed, according to the state bar's June 13 order granting motion to revoke probation and order of involuntary inactive enrollment. Miller had been placed on probation and was suspended from the practice of law for 90 days in January 2016 after having no prior record of discipline and entering into a pretrial stipulation with the state bar, according to the order.
The probation and suspension will remain in place until Miller provides the Office of Probation proof that he attended the state bar ethics school and the ethics school client trust accounting school and passes tests at the end of both sessions, according to the order.
"Furthermore, if he remains suspended for two years or more, [Miller] must also provide proof to the State Bar Court of his rehabilitation, fitness to practice and present learning and ability in the general law before his suspension will be terminate," the order said.
Probation conditions, with which Miller failed to comply, included not timely contacting his probation deputy to schedule a required meeting or submitting required quarterly reports, according to the order.
Miller was admitted to the bar in California on Sept. 2, 2003, according to his profile at the state bar website.
The probation had been handed down after a client filed a complaint against Miller over the way he'd handled $18,412.02 of the settlement, according to information provided in his profile. Miller failed to deposit the amount into his client trust account and his firm soon after dissolved.
Later the client didn't receive a settlement check and accounting because Miller mailed it to the client’s former home address. Miller sent the client a new cashier’s check and accounting after the client's complaint was filed with the state bar.
Miller also failed to provide the client an accounting of $16,000 in costs and used trust account funds to purchase cashier’s checks issued to Miller’s landlord, according to the information in his profile.