Skip to content
  • MyNewMarkets.com
  • Claims Journal
  • Insurance Journal TV
  • Academy of Insurance
  • Carrier Management
Insurance Journal - Property Casualty Industry News

Featured Stories

  • Farmers Data Breach Could Impact 1M+ Customers
  • ‘Big Four’ Reinsurers Maintain Property-Cat Appetite
  • Articles
  • Jobs
  • Markets

Current Magazine

current magazine
  • Read Online
  • Subscribe
  • Login
  • Front Page
    • National
    • International
    • Most Popular
    • Magazine
    • Forums
    • Blogs
    • Videos/Podcasts
    • Newsletters
  • News
    • Most Popular
    • National
    • International
    • East
    • Midwest
    • South Central
    • Southeast
    • West
  • Magazines
  • Research
  • Directories
  • Jobs
  • Features
    • Events
    • Forums
    • Market Directories
    • Quotes
    • Polls
    • Rankings & Awards
    • Insurance Giving Back
  • Subscribe

Georgia Trial Lawyer Surrenders License After Using Insurance Settlement Proceeds

By Insurance Journal Staff Reports | July 6, 2023
Email This Subscribe to Newsletter
  • Article

The Georgia Supreme Court has accepted the voluntary license surrender of a plaintiffs’ attorney who had been in practice for more than 45 years.

Richard L. Middleton Jr., of Savannah, acknowledged that he had violated Georgia Bar rules by using funds from a $100,000 trust account that held proceeds from an auto insurance settlement. The Bar accepted Middleton’s petition to surrender his law license and the court agreed.

“We have reviewed the record and agree to accept Middleton’s petition for voluntary surrender of his license, which is tantamount to disbarment,” the court wrote in its order, posted Wednesday. “Accordingly, it is ordered that the name of Richard H. Middleton, Jr., be removed from the rolls of persons authorized to practice law in the State of Georgia.”

Middleton, a licensed attorney since 1977, managed his own firm in Savannah. He represented injury victims, including many in accidents, product liability and environmental safety cases, according to a Distinguished Justice Associates website. He also handled business and employment litigation, insurance claims and insurance fraud matters.

“Richard Middleton has achieved more landmark settlements, judgment, and verdicts in more than 40 states throughout the U.S. than any other lawyer in the Savannah, Georgia area, netting seven- and eight-figure financial recovery figures for his clients,” the website reads.

The Supreme Court explained that in 2016, Middleton was associated as co-counsel by a South Carolina attorney, to represent a client injured in a car crash in the Savannah area. Middleton filed a lawsuit then settled it for the policy limits of $100,000. The insurance carrier was not named in the order.

The settlement funds were placed in Middleton’s interest-bearing trust account pending the resolution of the client’s South Carolina workers’ compensation case. In 2021, the Carolina attorney resolved the workers’ comp case after the insurance carrier agreed to waive a subrogation lien.

But Middleton would not disburse the settlement funds to the client or the South Carolina attorney, despite multiple requests, the court noted. He later admitted that the trust fund was depleted because he had incrementally withdrawn the proceeds for personal use and had withdrawn much more than the fees he was due.

The lawyer told the court that he has since fully reimbursed the client and the Carolina attorney. Middleton, who earned his law degree at Washington & Lee University, had no previous disciplinary actions against him, according to the Georgia Bar.

Topics Georgia South Carolina

Was this article valuable?

Thank you! Please tell us what we can do to improve this article.

Thank you! % of people found this article valuable. Please tell us what you liked about it.

Here are more articles you may enjoy.

When Luck Runs Out: Where $100B Hurricanes Might Happen
Ford to Recall Hundreds of Thousands of Vehicles Over Instrument Panel, Leak Issues
TransUnion: Aggressive Shopping Continues for Home, Auto Coverage
Sompo to Acquire Aspen for $3.5 Billion to Expand Global Access

Written By Insurance Journal Staff Reports

More From Author

The most important insurance news,
in your inbox every business day.

Get the insurance industry's trusted newsletter

Email This Subscribe to Newsletter
  • Categories: Southeast NewsTopics: auto insurance, insurance settlement, trust account abuse, WC news, workers' compensation
  • Have a hot lead? Email us at newsdesk@insurancejournal.com
More News
People Moves: Carpenter Taps Aon’s Goodman for Newly Created Role of Chief Client & Growth Officer; Aon Promotes Anderson as Head of Professional Services
Peloton Must Face Shareholder Lawsuit Over Post-Pandemic Outlook
Ford to Recall Hundreds of Thousands of Vehicles Over Instrument Panel, Leak Issues
DeSantis Unleashes ‘Florida DOGE’ in Quest to Kill Property Taxes
More News Features

Read This Next

  • Georgia Trial Lawyer Surrenders License After Using Insurance Settlement Proceeds
  • Federal Appeals Court Decertifies SC Class Action on Undervalued Totaled Vehicles
  • A Year Later, Mixed Reactions Over Florida's $36M Citizens Clearinghouse System
  • Viewpoint: Why Reinsurance Industry Often Struggles to Manage Market Cycles
  • Update: Another Carrier, Vision Insurance Exchange, to Set Up Shop in Florida

Insurance Jobs

  • Insurance Account Executive/Manager Wanted Flexible Hours, Potential Equity - Dix Hills/Deer Park, NY
  • Sales Agent - Encino, California
  • Outside Property Claim Representative – Fort Worth, TX - Fort Worth, TX
  • Product Management (General) Consultant I - North Carolina, NC
  • Major Case Specialist, Construction - Morristown, NJ
MyNewMarkets
  • When Insurance Isn't the Optimal Risk Management Approach
  • Reputation Risk Can Overshadow Ransom in Cyberattacks, Aon Says
  • Tackling Cyber Risks: The Vital Role of Brokers in Third-Party Data Protection
  • DIY Home Inspections Are Taking Over, Firms Say
  • Six Things to Know About Umbrella Insurance
Claims Journal
  • Didi Pays $740 Million to Settle Lawsuit Over US IPO
  • 4.4 Million Consumers' Data Compromised in Hack, Transunion Says
  • FTC Sues LA Fitness for Making it Exceedingly Hard to Cancel Gym Memberships
  • EU Carmakers Warn Combustion Engine Ban Is No Longer Feasible
  • Peloton Must Face Shareholder Lawsuit Over Post-Pandemic Outlook
Academy of Insurance education
  • August 7 EPLI Basics
  • August 14 Managing and Insuring Reputational Risk
  • August 19 How To Write: Flood
  • August 21 Workers' Comp Crash Course

Insurance News

  • News by Region
  • News by Topic
  • Yesterday

Site Search

Features

  • Insurance Markets Directory
  • Forums
  • A.M. Best Company Ratings
  • Industry Events
  • Agencies For Sale
  • Newswire
  • Insurance Jobs
  • Rankings & Awards

Connect with us

  • Email Newsletters
  • Magazine Subscriptions
  • For Your Website
  • RSS Feeds
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Do Not Sell My Info

Insurance Journal

  • Submit News
  • Advertise
  • Subscribe
  • Reprints
  • Link to Us
  • Contact Us

Wells Media Group Network

  • Insurance Journal
  • MyNewMarkets.com
  • Claims Journal
  • Insurance Journal TV
  • Academy of Insurance
  • Carrier Management
© 2025 by Wells Media Group, Inc. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Site Map