The Supreme Court of Ohio today disbarred a Columbus attorney for multiple ethical violations including falsifying bank records, charging excessive fees, and stealing client funds.

Gregory Port has been under an interim suspension since December 2023 for failure to comply with disciplinary orders. The Office of Disciplinary Counsel in March 2024 sought to begin default proceedings seeking Port’s permanent disbarment after he failed to answer the charges against him.

In 2004, Port had been indefinitely suspended for misusing client funds, engaging in dishonesty, and failing to cooperate in the investigation of his professional misconduct. He was reinstated to the practice of law in 2011. In a per curiam opinion, the Supreme Court stated that in light of his previous suspension, his recent misconduct warrants disbarment.

“Port’s repeated theft from clients and his dishonesty with clients and tribunals show that he lacks the character and integrity required of a member of the bar,” the opinion stated.

Chief Justice Sharon L. Kennedy and Justices Patrick F. Fischer, R. Patrick DeWine, Michael P. Donnelly, Melody Stewart, and Joseph T. Deters joined the opinion. Justice Jennifer Brunner did not participate in the case.

Attorney Arranges Property Sale to Wife’s Company
In 2019, Port was appointed the administrator of the estate of Stephen K. Renz. The primary asset was a property located in Columbus. As administrator, Port paid Estate Restoration Services, LLC, a company owned by Port’s wife, $6,500 to clean the property. His wife then formed another company, Wedgewood Holdings LLC. Again, acting as the estate’s administrator, Port sold Renz’s property to Wedgewood Holdings in October 2019 for $21,600.

Two months later, Wedgewood Holdings resold the property for $195,000. After the sale, Port asked the probate court to approve an appraisal value of the home and  order its sale, but he did not tell the court  he already sold the property and that his wife’s company resold it. In a February 2020 hearing, Port disclosed the sales and that his wife owned Wedgewood Holdings and Estate Restoration Services. The probate court removed him as the estate administrator.

The Board of Professional Conduct found Port committed several ethical violations, including acquiring an ownership interest in a client’s property without advising the client in writing of the desirability of obtaining independent legal counsel, and ensuring the terms are fair and reasonable and fully disclosed in a writing signed by the client. The opinion noted that “Port’s dishonesty toward the probate court and his continued representation of the estate while he had a conflict of interest” warrants a finding that his misconduct adversely reflected on his fitness to practice law.

Lawyer Withdraws $40,000 in Cash From Estate
In 2018, Port was appointed administrator of the estate of Jean VanPelt. As administrator, he wrote 15 checks to himself, sent 18 wire transfers to himself, and withdrew $40,000 in cash. His transactions totaled $307,869.

Port was replaced as administrator by Leona Young, VanPelt’s sister. Port gave Young a cashier’s check for $260,055, alleging it was the entirety of the estate. He did not provide her with any financial information to verify the legitimacy of his transactions. When she requested bank statements for the estate, Port fabricated bank records to conceal his misappropriation of funds. In June 2023, after realizing his deception had been discovered, Port self-reported his misconduct to the disciplinary counsel.

Charges for Attorney Work Questioned
Port was found to have committed ethical violations while representing two other clients. Nichelle Ennis hired him to find inheritances for her elderly aunt, Anne Sink. Port found Sink was owed $28,855 from three different deceased relatives. He told Ennis he intended to put Sink’s money in a special needs trust.

Sink died, and Port used $14,100 of the inheritance to pay Sink’s funeral expenses. He kept the remaining funds for his legal work. Port claimed he was creating the trust for Sink, but she died before it was completed. By law, Sink had been too old for such a trust. He billed the estate $325 an hour for 13.6 hours for work on the trust. The board found he charged a clearly excessive fee for a matter that could not be completed.

In 2021, he accepted $9,400 from Esther Imhoff and her family to create a trust to protect her assets from Medicaid recovery. After realizing Port had made little to no progress on the matter for months, the family terminated the representation. Port did not create the trust or refund the fee. The board found Port did not provide competent representation to a client, and failed to promptly return an unearned fee.

The opinion noted that Port used his position of trust to misappropriate client funds and assets and engaged in unethical transactions. The Court stated that taking fees from Imhoff and Ennis and failing to refund their money is “tantamount to theft.”

In addition to his disbarment, Port was ordered to pay $4,857 in restitution to the Sink estate and $9,400 to Imhoff. He was also ordered to pay the cost of the disciplinary proceedings.

2023-1512. Disciplinary Counsel v. Port, Slip Opinion No. 2024-Ohio-5566.

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