Disbarred Marietta Attorney Who Stole Over $200K From Clients Sentenced To Prison: DOJ

MARIETTA, GA — A former Marietta attorney will spend the next six years in prison after a federal grand jury found him guilty of stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars from clients without their knowledge, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

Chalmer "Chuck" Detling, 45, of Marietta, was the owner and operator of the Detling Law Group, a personal injury law firm in Marietta. From October 2014 to April 2016, Detling applied for and received dozens of fraudulent "litigation advances" — essentially high-interest, non-recourse loans — in the names of his clients without their consent or knowledge.

Litigation advances are intended for personal injury plaintiffs to cover non-litigation-related expenses, such as living and medical expenses, while their cases are pending. In exchange, the plaintiff agrees to repay the money plus interest when their case settles or ends favorably.

But because litigation advances are high-interest loans, plaintiffs typically only seek them out as a last resort, according to the DOJ.

Detling submitted litigation advance applications that were supposedly signed and executed by his clients, but they weren't. According to prosecutors, he did so even after some of the clients explicitly told him they didn't need or want the loan.

“Detling violated the trust of the clients that hired him and used his position as an attorney not to pursue justice, but to pursue a fraud scheme for personal gain,” said Philip Wislar, acting special agent in charge of FBI Atlanta. “Because of his self-interest and greed he has not only thrown away his career, but will spend time in prison for his crimes.”

He was able to hide what he was doing by having the funds wired or deposited into his law firm's Interest on Lawyer Trust Account accounts, according to prosecutors. Additionally, the financing companies did not require clients to be present when applying for the litigation advances or receiving the money.

Detling further concealed his actions by submitting forged documents to the financing companies, including a doctored offer letter from an insurance company in which he claimed they offered $250,000 to settle a case, when in fact they offered $2,000.

"He further concealed the fraud from the financing companies by exploiting the trust they placed in him as an attorney, by stringing them along with lies about the status of his clients' cases and the possibility of future repayment," a DOJ news release said.

While Detling was filing the fraudulent litigation advances, he was also already being investigated by the State Bar of Georgia for professional misconduct, including into accusations of mismanagement of client funds and settling cases without client authority.

In an anonymous note in May 2016, the Georgia Bar was told about a subset of the fraudulent litigation advances, the DOJ said, triggering communication to the financing companies, Detling's clients and the FBI.

After being deposed by the Georgia Bar, Detling repeatedly lied under oath about his knowledge and involvement with the fraudulent advances, prosecutors said. His license to practice law was suspended Sept. 1, 2016 and he voluntarily surrendered his law license Oct. 30, 2016 as "tantamount to disbarment," the DOJ said.

He was found guilty of four counts of wire fraud and five counts of aggravated identity theft in November, and sentenced Feb. 10 to five years and 10 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release. Detling was also ordered to pay $254,837.89 in restitution.

“Detling betrayed the trust of his clients, business associates, friends, and family, all to steal money,” U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine said. “This tough but fair sentence should remind those considering similar behavior about the consequences of those decisions, especially licensed professionals who are considering exploiting their clients in a time of need.”