TALLAHASSEE (Florida Record) — Ponte Vedra attorney Justin Everett Spiller faces suspension following an Sept. 20 Florida Supreme Court order regarding errors he allegedly made in a property closing, according to a recent announcement by The Florida Bar.
In its two-page order, the high court approved the uncontested referee's report filed in the matter before suspending Spiller for six months and ordered him to pay about $2,157 in costs. Spiller's suspension will be effective 30 days from the date of the court's order to allow him time to close his practice and protect his existing clients' interests, according to the high court's order.
Allegations against Spiller arise from his handling of a client's property closing, according to the state bar's Sept. 28 announcement of the discipline and the Supreme Court's order. The client is referred to in the announcement as "the complainant."
"The complainant wired funds into what she thought was Spiller's escrow trust account," the state bar said in its announcement. "In fact, the wiring instructions turned out to be his operating account. When the complainant later tried to sell the property, the title search revealed that the property taxes, nuisance liens and owner’s policy had never been paid."
The client ended up paying the costs for a second time, according to the announcement.
"Spiller admitted his mistake and that he'd failed to pay for and resolve the additional matters," the announcement said. "Spiller also admitted that he inadvertently used the money in his operating account for other matters. He subsequently refunded the money he should have used to pay the extra costs."
Florida court orders are not final until time to file a rehearing motion expires. Filing such a motion does not alter the effective date of Spiller's suspension.
Spiller was admitted to the bar in Florida on Oct. 5, 2007, according to his profile at the state bar website. No prior discipline before the state bar is listed on Spiller's state bar profile.