CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- J. Neal Rodgers was a high-profile attorney who landed some of the biggest cases in the Charlotte region, but for now Rodgers’ career has come to an end.
He represented some of the victims of former CMPD officer Marcus Jackson, who was convicted of sexually assaulting women during traffic stops. He also represented the family of Mouy Tang, who wandered away from a Cleveland County nursing home.
Late last month the North Carolina State Bar stripped him of his law license, and he’s accused of misappropriating $80,000 of his client’s money.
Mark Merritt is a counselor with the bar. He can’t talk specifics about the case but he told News Channel 36, "Misappropriation of client funds is one of the leading causes for attorneys being disbarred."
Merit said that the rules are so strict and clear that attorneys are not even allowed to borrow from their client accounts.
“The state bar will almost always prosecute the attorney to have the attorney disbarred," said Merritt.
According to the paperwork on file with the bar, Rodgers is not contesting the charges and admitted that he could not successfully defend himself.
"Our job is to protect the public, first and foremost, and if a lawyer is misapplying or misappropriating funds then that lawyer should not be practicing law," said Merritt.
