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People v. Gabriel Nathan Schwartz
Gabriel Schwartz served a disciplinary suspension from June 2019 to March 2020. According to the disciplinary opinion, Schwartz remained involved with his law firm to some extent during his suspension. He did no work on cases but managed administrative and recordkeeping issues. In November 2019, during the suspension, Schwartz received a call from a potential client, who wanted to pursue remedies for an automobile accident in Texas she was involved in. After that telephone discussion, the client received a packet of intake paperwork from a paralegal at Schwartz’s law firm. None of the intake documents mentioned Schwartz. The client signed and returned the paperwork to the firm, according to the opinion.
Over the following months, the client exchanged emails with paralegals but not with Schwartz or his law partner. Only in April 2020 did the client receive correspondence from Schwartz, who reported he and his law partner decided to divide their law practice, the opinion noted. In the letter, Schwartz stated, “Your case will continue to be handled by myself as it has since you came to our office,” but the statement was not factually accurate, as Schwartz did no work on the matter during his suspension.
The email also failed to inform the client she had her choice of counsel and could work with any lawyer of her choosing. Though the client continued to correspond with the law firm’s paralegals, the disciplinary opinion noted Schwartz’s next contact with the client was in March 2022, when he called her to tell her that the Texas statute of limitations that applied to her claim had passed.
According to the disciplinary opinion, Schwartz offered to pay the client $5,000 to release any malpractice claims and he sent her a draft release, which included a provision noting each party had been encouraged to seek independent legal advice. The client didn’t sign the release and instead settled with Schwartz’s malpractice carrier.
The Presiding Disciplinary Judge approved Schwartz’s stipulation to discipline and suspended him for six months, effective Jan. 2.