Rate and Review Jeff Ellingworth

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- Excessive fees & Extortion - - James Howerton - 11/1/2015 - flag as inappropriate - comment
I hired Mr. Ellingworth to help evict multiple persons from rental property. We agreed on a fee for Mr. Ellingworth to do specific items. I pre paid for the expected services. Situations changed and Mr. Ellingworth services were not required to perform all the task we agreed upon. Mr. Ellingworth verbally said that we would work it out after the appeal. The day of court we were sitting in the second row of bench seats in front of the judge, minutes before I was to go in front of the Judge, Mr. Ellingworth hand wrote a letter to me and told me," that if I did not sign it, then he would get up and leave the court room" and I would be left there without a lawyer. The note he handed me said that I agreed to pay Mr. Ellingworth an additional $3,500 dollars. Not only was this a total surprise but the way that he did it was like a robber handing a bank teller a robbery note and the look on his face and tone of his voice made me believe that he was seriously going to leave me there in the court room without a lawyer if I did not sign the paper and agree. I was totally unprepared for this and put into a state of dismay and disbelief. Confused and actually feeling fearful I signed the paper and agreed. I did pay what I believe was and is extortion. I have since researched at the library and this behavior is in violation of the N.C. Bar Rules and Regulations of Professional Conduct and also there is regulations as to the fee's and how when situations change and what was first thought required done later is not required that this change of situation requires a renegotiation of things. I did contact Mr. Ellingworth and asked him to reimburse $1,500 of the $6,000 fee he extracted from me and he agreed verbally on the telephone and in text messages procrastinated in reimbursing me the funds and bringing closure to the whole situation. After weeks of this procrastination on his part, he stopped communications with me. I am now filing a grievance with the NC Bar for the to me, apparent extortion letter in the court room and also a separate grievance with a arbitrator on the fee issue. If required I will pursue this to the court system.