Lawyer Admits He Can't Defend $2.4M Client Embezzlement Case, Loses License
After admitting that he can’t defend himself against charges that he embezzled $2.4 million from a corporate client and blew most of the money at casino slot machines and agreeing to be disbarred by consent, a Milwaukee attorney had his law license revoked today by the Wisconsin Supreme Court.
Thomas Koch, 46, pleaded guilty in May in a criminal theft case concerning the embezzlement from Affiliated Computer Services of Dallas, Texas, and is scheduled to be sentenced next month, reports the Proof and Hearsay blog of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
He has also begun treatment for compulsive gambling.
To be reinstated as a Wisconsin lawyer, Koch must make full restitution to his client, the supreme court says in its order (PDF) today.
His embezzlement came to light after a new litigation manager at ACS noticed in 2007 that Koch was handling some 360 open claims. The company helps medical insurers recover costs for injured individuals and Koch had been retained in 2001 to handle this work in the Milwaukee area.
She asked Koch to provide the status of the open claims and, when he failed to do so, she discovered that 270 had settled without ACS receiving any proceeds, the Journal Sentinel recounts.
Koch is a 1990 graduate of Marquette University Law School.
Earlier coverage:
ABAJournal.com: “Lawyer Accused of Stealing $2.4M from Corporate Client, Gambling It Away”
