This matter is before the Court on Respondent Charles Houston Richards, Jr.’s application for certification of fitness/reinstatement, which was filed in accordance with Part A, Section 10 Readmission and Reinstatement of the Rules Governing Admission to the Practice of Law in Georgia. Richards was originally admitted to the Bar in 1991. In 2008, Richards was disbarred after he failed to file Notices of Rejection to two Notices of Discipline despite having been properly served, see In the Matter of Richards, 284 Ga. 154 663 SE2d 708 2008. Both Notices of Discipline charged him with failure to properly distribute to his clients funds he collected in a judgment and failure to have sufficient funds in his trust account. Based upon his disbarment in Georgia, Richards was also disbarred in Florida, where he had been a member of the Bar since 1986, and by the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia.
In July 2014, Richards filed with the Office of Bar Admissions an Application for Certification to Practice Law, which serves as an application for readmission. In connection therewith, Richards filed a statement of rehabilitation in accordance with In re Cason, 249 Ga. 806 294 SE2d 520 1982, detailing his history of alcohol and drug abuse and explaining the effect that alcohol and drugs had on his life and career. He expressed his remorse for his conduct, took full responsibility therefor, and outlined his efforts at rehabilitation in the community through his documented involvement in numerous religious, community and civic organizations, in his personal life, in his relationships with his former clients, and in his current employment. The record contains four letters of personal reference, three from members of the non-profit community and one from a prior client. The authors of the letters all attest to Richards’ high moral character, his generosity and compassion, his commitment to rehabilitation, and his professionalism and diligence in reestablishing the requisite character and fitness for a member of the State Bar of Georgia. They all support his readmission.
