SC disbars lawyer for misappropriating clients’ funds

The Supreme Court has disbarred a lawyer for grave misconduct after he was found to have misappropriated his clients’ compensation money after a court ruled in their favor in an expropriation case.

According to the Office of the Spokesperson of the Supreme Court, a regional trial court ruled in favor of lawyer Demosthenes Tecson's clients and awarded them P134 million.

Tecson received the amount but only remitted P53 million to the clients. He was said to have kept the rest for his attorney's fees and allegedly for the campaign of a former lawmaker.

This led his former clients to file an administrative case for disbarment against him with the Integrated Bar of the Philippines. 

The IBP found Tecson guilty of violating his duty under the Code of Professional Responsibility and Accountability (CPRA). The SC adopted the IBP’s findings and recommendations. 

“If a lawyer fails to manage a client’s money properly during and after the lawyer-client relationship, this is considered misappropriation. If the lawyer does not return the money upon request, it is assumed that they have misappropriated the funds for their own benefit, thereby violating the client’s trust,” the SC press release read.

The court press release said Tecson asserted that the “unreturned amount used to pay a ‘PR man’ to expedite the case lacked supporting evidence.” 

“Additionally, even if this claim were true, it would amount to bribery. The SC emphasized that lawyers must never give inappropriate or illegal advice. Thus, their duty to account for their client’s funds and property must align with their obligation to obey the law. Lawyers must use their client’s funds only for lawful purposes,” it noted. –NB, GMA Integrated News