Attorneys Turn Back Their Sanctions Over Client’s Absence

Two lawyers in a credit-reporting case lacked notice that their client’s failure to appear at mediation could lead to sanctions against them, and there’s no evidence they acted in bad faith, the Eleventh Circuit ruled, vacating a lower court’s order.

Daniel Zemel and Brian Giles represented Deondra Miller in her suit against Midland Credit Management Inc. for violations of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. A remote mediation, already past the deadline in a court scheduling order, was set for June 16, 2020, according to the appeals court.

Zemel and Giles appeared for the mediation, but Miller didn’t, despite confirming ...