TALLAHASSEE (Florida Record) — Fort Myers attorney David Allen Brener has been permanently disbarred following a June 6 Florida Supreme Court order after he allegedly abandoned his practice, according to a recent announcement by the Florida Bar.
"Brener was also ordered to pay restitution to six clients after his apparent abandonment of his law practice," the state bar said in its June 21 announcement of the discipline and the Supreme Court's order. "Beginning in October 2018, six judges from three different Florida counties reported Brener’s failure to appear at numerous court appearances. Brener also failed to communicate with his clients, failed to perform the work for which he was retained, and failed to respond to the Bar or otherwise participate in the disciplinary proceedings."
In its two-page order, the Supreme Court approved the uncontested amended referee's report filed in the matter before permanently disbarring Brener. The court also ordered Brener to pay a total of $27,800 in restitution, in addition to almost $2,252 in costs.
Brener already was suspended, which meant his permanent disbarment was effective immediately. 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 Brener's disbarment.
Attorneys disbarred in Florida generally cannot reapply for admission for five years and must pass an extensive process that includes a rigorous background check and retaking the bar exam.
Brener was admitted to the bar in Florida on Jan. 22, 1988, according to his profile at the state bar website. No prior discipline before the state bar is listed on Brener's state bar profile.
Brener was indefinitely suspended in December following a Florida Supreme Court order and the state bar's petition for emergency suspension that claimed Brener "appears to be causing great public harm by failing to attend hearings and abandoning his clients' legal matters, and failing to protect his clients' interests."
Brener did not answer the state bar's formal complaint or attend a sanctions hearing in February, according to the amended referee's report.