Donald Arthur Asplund was admitted to the California Bar 18th December 1974, but has since been disbarred. Donald graduated from UC Hastings COL.
Lawyer Information
| Name | Donald Arthur Asplund |
|---|---|
| First Admitted | 18 December 1974 (49 years, 5 months ago) |
| Status | Disbarred |
| Bar Number | 60470 |
Contact
| Phone Number | (415) 239-0700 |
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Schools
| Law School | UC Hastings COL (San Francisco CA) |
|---|---|
| Undergraduate School | San Francisco State Unv (San Francisco CA) |
Address
| Current Address | 433 Occidental Ave Burlingame, CA 94010-5107 |
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| Map |
History
| 16 August 1998 | Disbarred (25 years, 8 months ago) |
|---|---|
| 9 February 1998 | Not Eligible To Practice Law in CA (26 years, 3 months ago) |
| 18 December 1974 | Admitted to The State Bar of California (49 years, 5 months ago) |
Discipline Summaries
August 16, 1998 DONALD ARTHUR ASPLUND [#60470], 61, of Burlingame was disbarred Aug. 16, 1998, and was ordered to comply with rule 955 of the California Rules of Court. Asplund misappropriated $18,500 from an estate for which he served as executor.The money came from two bank accounts on which Asplund wrote four checks without authorization. During periodic conversations with a beneficiary of the estate, Asplund assured her that he was proceeding with the estate administration and that he had listed a property for sale, when in fact he had not done so.Although he initially responded the beneficiaries' inquiries, he did not respond to a request for an accounting and a copy of the inventory and appraisal. When the clients became suspicious, they hired a new attorney and Asplund was removed as executor.When ordered by the court to file an accounting of the estate, Asplund deposited $15,757 in one account and $7,500 in another, amounts which exceeded the amount he had taken. (Eventually, $3,500 was returned to him.)He admitted that he had taken funds, which he called short-term loans.The bar court concluded that Asplund failed to perform legal services competently, breached his fiduciary duty as an attorney and representative of the estate, failed to preserve entrusted funds properly, commingled funds, failed to provide an accounting for funds as requested, made false statements to the estate's beneficiaries, and failed to provide an accounting or turn over estate records.Misappropriation of entrusted estate funds constitutes moral turpitude.In mitigation, Asplund practiced law for 19 years without a record of discipline. The court rejected his potential claim that he was emotionally unable to deal with the disbarment proceeding, because he offered no proof. Nor did he show that his mental state caused the misappropriation in the first place.Asplund did not participate in the disbarment proceeding."Conduct of the type engaged in by [Asplund] significantly tarnishes the reputation of the legal profession," wrote hearing Judge Nancy Roberts Lonsdale. Asplund "is not someone who can be trusted to safely handle the affairs and funds of members of the public." |