BELLEVILLE – Attorney George Ripplinger has temporarily lost practice privileges at the Eighth U.S. Circuit appellate court, the Missouri Supreme Court, and the U.S. district court for Southern Illinois.
His failure to notify them that the Illinois Supreme Court censured him brought him greater punishment than the conduct that led to his censure.
Chief Missouri Justice George Draper suspended Ripplinger on March 2, and advised him he could apply for reinstatement in a year.
Reciprocal suspensions followed from the Eighth Circuit and the district court, both advising that he could return when Missouri’s court reinstates him.
Chief District Judge Nancy Rosenstengel took action on May 14, finding Ripplinger didn’t report the Illinois censure or the Missouri suspension to her court.
She wrote that her court wasn’t made aware of the suspension until March 31.
Illinois Supreme Court Justices stopped short of suspension in 2018, when they found Ripplinger committed misconduct at a car crash trial in Metropolis.
They found he and his client concealed from judge and jury that another injury accident had occurred a few days earlier in Kentucky.
They found he persisted in an improper line of questions despite many warnings.
Ripplinger’s license, which he earned in 1970, remains active for Illinois courts.
Last December, in district court, Ripplinger rescued California couple Tracey Keiser and Robert Frazier from a default judgment worth $3,719,899.63.
He entered an appearance two days after Southern Illinois Motor Express of Cutler moved for final judgment.
The trucking company alleges fraud and defamation against Keiser and Frazier, who managed the company’s health insurance.
Two lawyers before Ripplinger dropped Keiser and Frazier as clients due to communication breakdown and failure to pay.
Ripplinger jumped in knowing the censure had caught up with him, because Missouri’s Supreme Court had issued a show cause order to him on Nov. 25.
In response he asked for reprimand as Missouri’s equivalent of censure.
Missouri’s disciplinary counsel recommended suspension for six months, and the Justices doubled it.
Rosenstengel issued a show cause order on March 31, and Ripplinger responded that his conduct didn’t warrant suspension.
He asked for censure as reciprocal to the Illinois Supreme Court’s action, but she found he didn’t claim he should have received less discipline in Missouri.