Anna Maria attorney suspended for conflict of interest

An Anna Maria Island attorney has been suspended for 60 days because of a conflict of interest, according to a release.

Charles Houston Webb, an attorney on Anna Maria Island who was admitted to practice in 1986 and a former Anna Maria Commissioner, represented a married couple in several matters over the years but engaged in a conflict of interest when he sued the couple and foreclosed on three of their properties to recover legal fees, according to The Florida Bar. The legal fees were close to $6,000. Two of the properties were listed in Palmetto and one in Holmes Beach.

According to The Florida Bar, Webb gave the clients no credit for the value of the first property, which he sold after foreclosing on it, and did not disclose the foreclosure to the courts. He continued to foreclose on two other properties, one of which may have been the couple’s home, The Florida Bar said.

But the Bar, Webb said, looked at one motion which did not state the property value because it was not known and, at that time, the property had not yet been sold.

“Later on when it was sold by my firm the clients were given credit, but that didn’t satisfy their debt,” Webb said Thursday.

Webb also said that the conflict of interest he was found in violation of was because the Bar felt that he sued his former clients before withdrawing his representation of them.

“The problem is that I did correctly file suit after withdrawing from representing one client, and had informed both that I was no longer representing them,” Webb said. “I'm the only attorney that has ever been found in violation for this.”

He was suspended for 60 days and will be placed on probation for a year once he is reinstated following the suspension. The suspension begins Saturday.

Other terms of the suspension include Webb attending the Florida Bar’s Ethics School and an office procedures and record-keeping analysis, along with other recommendations. There will be a final review 45 days before the probation period ends to confirm his compliance and implementation of recommendations.

He was one of 12 Florida attorneys disciplined by the Florida Supreme Court last month.

This story was originally published December 28, 2017 at 3:00 PM with the headline "Anna Maria attorney suspended for conflict of interest."