Lawyer disbarred for theft

A Columbus lawyer has been permanently disbarred by the Ohio Supreme Court for stealing $363,444 in settlement funds in the cases of 23 clients.

The justices revoked the law license of Shawn Andrea Little on Thursday, finding that she was “disingenuous, misleading and manipulative” and “selectively stole funds under circumstances where the clients were not likely to complain.”

The personal-injury lawyer generally stole funds by settling cases, paying the amounts owed to her clients and herself and then failing to pay creditors, such as medical providers or other lawyers who served as co-counsel.

The amounts, ranging from $3.80 to more than $201,000, were misappropriated between 2007 and 2014, court disciplinary officials charged. Little voluntarily reported her misconduct to court officials in 2014 and had repaid all but $105,000 by the time professional misconduct charges were filed.

The stolen money was used to settle unrelated cases and for her own benefit, such as paying office expenses, the court found. The largest misappropriation involved a $637,500 settlement in a personal-injury case in which she distributed $208,000 to her three clients. She retained $208,000 for her legal fees and $12,900 for expenses. The remaining funds were to be used to pay creditors and for other expenses, but Little spent the money on other matters.

Little, 51, was found to have acted with dishonest or selfish motives and engaging in a pattern of misconduct involving “vulnerable clients.”

Records also show she faces liens for more than $160,000 in unpaid federal and state taxes.