The attorney represented my dad in the probate of my sister’s estate.
My dad has documented dementia, Lewy body disease, Alzheimer’s disease, and Parkinson’s disease.
Despite those diagnoses, the attorney sought to have him appointed as fiduciary over the estate.
The procedural problem began at the outset.
On April 9, 2026, the attorney filed a Petition for Letters of Administration in the Probate Court of Thomas County, Georgia, Case No. 25266.
The petition itself identified my sister’s domicile as Gwinnett County, Georgia.
That is significant because the filing contained, on its face, the fact showing that the estate belonged in another county.
The Thomas County Probate Court later entered a Transfer Order on May 6, 2026.
The order states that the Petition for Letters of Administration had been filed in Thomas County on April 9, 2026, while the petition listed the decedent’s domicile as Gwinnett County.
The court specifically relied on Uniform Probate Court Rule 5.8 and ordered the entire original record transferred to the Gwinnett County Probate Court.
The order further required the original record to be mailed to Gwinnett County and required a $50 check payable to the Gwinnett County Probate Court.
The Thomas County court therefore formally corrected the venue problem by transferring the proceeding.
Thomas County probate record:
https://georgiaprobaterecords.com/Imaging/ViewScannedImage.aspx?DocType=4&CaseID=MjQyNTk3MA==&CID=MTA4OQ==
This was not a situation where the correct county became known later.
The petition filed by the attorney already identified Gwinnett County as my sister’s domicile.
In my experience, this reflected inadequate intake and procedural review before filing.
Basic probate intake should include determining the decedent’s domicile, identifying the proper probate court, checking for existing proceedings, reviewing the court record, and determining whether the proposed fiduciary has conditions materially affecting the ability to serve.
Here, the attorney filed in Thomas County while simultaneously presenting a petition stating that the decedent was domiciled in Gwinnett County.
I challenged the venue and pursued the matter in the correct county.
The attorney changed course only after the venue problem was raised and the Thomas County Probate Court ordered the transfer.
The day after the filing dispute developed, the attorney called me directly and said:
“be prepared is all I can say”
and
“if you go down that road with me, you better be ready.”
I preserved the call.
The procedural problems continued after the transfer.
My filings were available through the Gwinnett Tyler/eFileGA system, yet the attorney later communicated as though filings already entered electronically were not before the court or available to him.
That was especially concerning because this was not an ordinary uncontested estate.
It involved a contested effort to appoint my dad as fiduciary even though he has documented dementia, Lewy body disease, Alzheimer’s disease, and Parkinson’s disease.
The court record, venue, existing proceedings, filing status, and fiduciary qualifications all required careful review before asking a probate court to place estate authority in his hands.
The Georgia Rules of Professional Conduct require competence and adequate preparation under Rule 1.1, diligence under Rule 1.3, candor toward the tribunal under Rule 3.3, truthfulness in statements to others under Rule 4.1, and prohibit conduct involving dishonesty, deceit, or misrepresentation under Rule 8.4.
My experience was a continuing pattern of inadequate intake, filing in the wrong county despite the petition itself identifying the correct domicile, requiring a formal transfer order, failing to adequately check the court record, artificial urgency, direct pressure, inaccurate statements concerning electronic filings, and continued pursuit of appointment of my dad as fiduciary despite documented dementia and multiple serious neurological conditions.
victim
2026-09-24 00:48:07
