Court suspends Wisconsin licenses for 2 out-of-state lawyers

The Wisconsin Supreme Court suspended the licenses of two out-of-state lawyers Tuesday. The punishments were reciprocal discipline for violations in the lawyers’ home states.

The Chicago attorney Nicholas Kefalos will lose his Wisconsin license for six months, starting Dec. 3. The Illinois Supreme Court suspended his Illinois license in March for neglecting three clients, failing to refund unearned fees that he charged to those clients and failing to cooperate with Illinois lawyer regulators. In May, the Wisconsin OLR charged Kefalos with two counts of misconduct and asked for the six-month suspension as reciprocal discipline for his violations in Illinois.

Wisconsin’s high court also suspended the license of Jeffrey White, an attorney from Auburn, Maine, for nine months starting immediately. He lost his Maine license for nine months for professional misconduct, including failing to report as much as $30,000 worth of fees he received in a bankruptcy case. White was already under administrative suspension in Wisconsin for failing to pay State Bar dues and submit required trust-account certification, and that suspension will remain in effect until he takes remedial steps.