Thursday, August 04, 2005
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

LV lawyer gives up legal practice

State high court grants request of Sean M. Liles

CARSON CITY -- The state Supreme Court granted a former Las Vegas lawyer his request Wednesday to resign from practicing law and avoid pending disciplinary actions from the State Bar of Nevada.

Justices noted that the U.S. District Court last year made a $758,000 summary judgment against lawyer Sean M. Liles to cover losses of those harmed by his conduct.

The decision means Liles, now a Michigan resident, cannot practice law in Nevada again without passing the bar examination and proving he has high ethical standards.

In a complaint brought by the State Bar's Southern Nevada Disciplinary Board, Liles was accused of bilking an insurance company out of hundreds of thousands of dollars. He was accused of working with the insurance company's construction defects claims adjuster Michael Yagi to create phony claims and bogus bank accounts.

According to court documents, the scheme was discovered only after Liles set up an account with Bank of America for a fictitious claimant who he said was represented by the Wolfenzon Law Group.

The Bank of America, however, accidentally placed the check for this phony "Wolfenzon Law" client in the account of the Wolfenzon Law Group.

The firm made inquiries about the deposit, an investigation was launched and the scheme uncovered.

Yagi has confessed to his part in the scheme, according to court documents.