IN THE PROFESSION
Financial Fraud Hits Atlanta Law Firms- Know When To Say“ NO”
LOUIS COHAN Cohan & Levy lcohan @ cohanlevy. com
It started normal enough. One of our more senior attorneys(“ Associate”) caught an incoming call. The caller was calling about a business dispute involving about $ 2,000,000.00. Associate called me as I was out of the office. She had performed a conflict check. There was no conflict. She had not heard of the soon to be defendant, but she researched online, and it was a real company. We quoted a $ 25,000.00 retainer and provided wire instructions, and the caller requested instructions to wire in the retainer.
A little later, we received the retainer. Associate started to work up the case. There was a lengthy call with the client to gather information and to discuss strategy. I was really busy with a rapidly approaching trial and so I was relying more heavily on Associate then would be typical to get the case going. Associate was senior level and fully capable to handle, and she was keeping me informed.
We agreed on a strategy and prepared a draft of the complaint. We sent the draft to the client for review. There was some back-and-forth, as the client suggested edits.
To this point, all seemed normal and routine.
Then, late on a Friday afternoon, before we filed the lawsuit, Associate called my cell to inform me that she had heard from the client. According to the client, they had continued to negotiate directly with the opponent, and they had reached a tentative agreement. The client transmitted the settlement terms and requested Associate to prepare the settlement terms. Associate relayed the settlement to me in broad strokes and confirmed authority to prepare the formal agreement. The terms were simple enough. The opponent was to pay a discounted sum, and the parties would release each other. I approved and Associate prepared the agreement. Associate transmitted the draft to the client.
It was only at this point that the first small red flag went up. The same day, Associate informed me that the client returned the unedited agreement, fully executed. The agreement was simple, and we have prepared, essentially, that same agreement many times, but rarely does anyone immediately sign and return without even a single edit. Then, we received
12 JANUARY / FEBRUARY 2026