From
Social Security Office of Hearings and AppealsAdjudications Officer
From
Social Security Office of Hearings and Appeals
Adjudications Officer
To: Oregon Bar Association-Disciplinary Board
Re: David Lowry, Possible Attorney Misconduct
Dear Disciplinary Board:
I am writing to alert you to possible misconduct by David Lowry, AAL. Attorney David Lowry has been a member of the Oregon Bar since 1973 (per his letterhead). His address and phone number are 10300 SW Greenburg Road, Portland, OR 97223 and (503) 245-6309
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I first
heard of Attorney David Lowry at a training session in Salem in mid 1996,
where the consensus of many government attendees was that it was Attorney
David Lowry’s standard operating procedure with his Social Security
administration law practice to delay the proceedings so that in those
claims in which he would eventually be successful, his 25% of the past due
benefits would be larger, due to the greater elapsed time resulting in more
months of past due benefits. |
However, I was not and am not in a position to know whether his motivations were such as they described, or even whether any of his delays are the result of a practice which has grown too large as was suggested by a Eugene lawyer with a Social Security practice. However, if not for this hearsay, I probably would not have informed you about the following.
I have personally dealt with Attorney David Lowry regarding one disability claim, and it does not appear to me that he conformed to the Code of Professional Responsibility which would be applied if he was an attorney in the state of my bar membership. I assume that Oregon’s Code is similar.
I work for the Social Security Administration’s Office of Hearings and Appeals. We deal with claimants who are requesting Social Security benefits but who have already been denied twice and are now seeking a hearing before an Administrative Law Judge. Due to the privacy regulations, I cannot be too specific with details. Thus, I understand that you may be limited to filing this for future reference.
Attorney David Lowry represented a client for Social Security benefits whose file I screened for possible payment without a hearing. Following my review, I contacted David Lowry in mid-January 1997 to inquire as to whether the claimant would be willing to amend his alleged disability onset date from mid-1993 due to a non-disability issue, I.E., he was laid off while being investigated for official misconduct in a governmental position, and for which the criminal court eventually found him guilty. There was no evidence supporting a 1993 medical disability, but there was some to support for a medical disability beginning in late 1994.
David Lowry did not get back to me so I called him again, in mid-February of 1997. At that time he indicated that he had not yet contacted the claimant, but would “get right on it”. Upon calling David Lowry a week later, he stated that he had not yet called the claimant but would get to it now. I thanked him for his time and told him I would let the claim go to a hearing.
As luck would have it, after the claim went to hearing in late 1997, I was the writer who got it to write the Judge’s denial decision. It was an easy decision to write because I could simply trash the claimant’s credibility, normally the pivotal issue in disability claims, by pointing out that the claimant’s alleged disability date, related to his suspension for criminal activity, not any medical disability.
It appears to me that David Lowry’s failure to communicate timely with his client, as well as his probable failure to inform him of a critical weakness in his presentation, a weakness which was correctable and which he was provided notice of, did a great disservice to the claimant. This is certainly not the kind of representation I would want for myself.
Sincerely,
Glen H.
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Click here to return to Oregon State Bar Reporter (found on the internet at www.OregonShyster.com )
like
a slave," "David Lowry, I want you stopped." "David Lowry
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Social
Security attorney H. Peter Evans and Social Security attorney
David Lowry refused to give up client's property and papers
so new attorney can swiftly get client benefits required says
complaint to State Bar
1.29.2005
My Mis-Adventures with Oregon Social Security Disability
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stunt?