In the Matter of Jefferson L. Adams

These disciplinary matters are before the Court on the Report and Recommendation of the Special Master, Roy R. Kelly III, recommending that the Court accept the petition for voluntary discipline filed by Jefferson Lee Adams State Bar No. 003523 and impose a Review Panel reprimand based on Adams’s mishandling and neglect of two matters and violations of Rules 1.3, 1.4, 5.3, and 9.3 of the Georgia Rules of Professional Conduct found in Bar Rule 4-102 d. After the State Bar filed three formal complaints, Adams filed his answers and a petition for voluntary discipline in which he sought a Review Panel reprimand. The State Bar requested that the Special Master accept the voluntary petition and impose a Review Panel reprimand. Based on the written record, the Special Master addressed the three matters that formed the basis of the formal complaints in a single order and found as follows.

In the first matter, Adams represented a client in a child support and visitation case. The attorney-client relationship turned contentious, and the client stopped payment on a $1,500 check to Adams. Nevertheless, Adams prepared documents and appeared in court on the client’s behalf, and the Special Master concluded that Adams did not violate any rules.