Accused judge still working for town
Town Court judge hires Chris Kouros as her replacement, despite his pending disciplinary action
NWI Times
Oct 20, 2000
nwitimes.com/uncategorized/accused-judge-still-working-for-town/article_24334bcf-bd60-58a3-8260-112e94eeb895
SCHERERVILLE -- Despite a pending suspension from the practice of law for stealing client money to support a gambling addiction, a politically connected lawyer has continued serving as a temporary judge in the Schererville Town Court.
Town Court Judge Deborah Riga is defending her selection of Chris Kouros to sit as her judge pro tempore replacement on Oct. 12 in spite of a severe disciplinary action against Kouros Sept. 11 by the Indiana Supreme Court disciplinary commission.
Riga, who said she had selected Kouros long before his suspension because she knew she was going out of town, pointed out Kouros' suspension does not take effect until Monday, and said he is still able to perform all duties of a lawyer through then.
The judge said she was not concerned about having Kouros sit as her replacement.
"I answer to the Supreme Court, and they have said that Chris is still a lawyer through the 23rd," she said. "There was no violation on his part or mine in his sitting."
"I'm not even sure what all the allegations are," Riga said. "I don't feel comfortable commenting on some else's disciplinary action."
Kouros is the brother of former Schererville Town Councilman Tom Kouros, the nephew of longtime East Chicago City Councilman Gus Kouros and the cousin of Lake Criminal Court Judge Joan Kouros.
On Sept. 11, the disciplinary commission and Kouros came to an agreement under which he would be suspended for at least one year and have to petition the Supreme Court for reinstatement to the bar.
The allegations were that Kouros wrote checks to clients for settlements of $2,500 and $750 at a time when his account had a balance about $83 and that he also took $5,000 a client gave him to settle a suit with a third party but that he "failed to deposit it in his client trust account and instead used it for purposes unrelated to the client."
Four other counts detail similar allegations of juggling client money. Kouros, the disciplinary commission said, "repeatedly infused his own funds into his client trust account to cover shortfalls occasioned by his own misuse of funds."
In making the allegations, the commission said Kouros "converted the clients' funds," which is a criminal misdemeanor. "It is professional misconduct for a lawyer to engage in a criminal act which reflects adversely on his honesty, trustworthiness or fitness as a lawyer."
Kouros' actions, the commission found, "involved dishonesty, fraud, deceit and misrepresentation."
However, the court noted that Kouros' bank covered all the overdrafts and that no client was deprived of funds at any time.
Kouros "temporarily used at least some client funds to cover his gambling debts," the commission found, but said "there was no intent permanently to deprive clients of their funds. This conclusion is fortunate for (Kouros) since outright theft of client funds generally warrants very severe sanction up to and including disbarment."
Although Kouros did not respond to inquiries by The Times, the disciplinary commission ruling said he cooperated with their investigation and suffers from a gambling addiction for which he is receiving counseling, including participation in Gamblers Anonymous.
Disciplinary Commission Executive Secretary Donald Lundberg said that, although Kouros cannot take on any new clients during the limbo period between the suspension order and the date it takes effect, "this situation (pro tem) was simply not contemplated by the rules, the possibility that a lawyer in that gap time would be asked to sit as a pro tem."
The purpose of the "gap" is to give a suspended lawyer time to wrap up pending cases so as not to inconvenience clients, "not so you can take on new clients when you know darn well you can't continue to represent them," Lundberg said.
The default position, in the absence of a rule, "is that unless it's excluded, it's permitted," said Lundberg. "If there is an issue, it's not the legality but the prudence on the part of the judge who made the appointment -- was it a smart thing to do?
"That's for others to judge. I'm not the judge of smartness, my job's tough enough."
Riga said she does not regret the decision, and said she has used Kouros exclusively as her substitute -- although she has only used a replacement on rare occasions.
She said she asked others to sit in for her as well, but it is hard to find someone willing to work nights in that unpaid position.
