Justin Grey Woodward
A Chattanooga attorney has received a public censure for exchanging sexually explicit text messages and emails with a client.
The public censure for attorney Justin Grey Woodward was from the Board of Professional Responsibility of the Tennessee Supreme Court.
The court said, "Mr.
Woodward represented a client in a domestic relations matter. During the representation, Mr. Woodward created a conflict of interest by exchanging sexually explicit text messages and emails with his client. There was a significant risk that Mr. Woodward’s personal interests materially limited his representation of the client.
"By these acts, Justin Grey Woodward created a concurrent conflict of interest in his representation of this client in violation of Rule 1.7(a)(2) (conflict of interest) and is hereby publicly censured for this violation."
A public censure is a rebuke and warning to the attorney, but it does not affect the attorney’s ability to practice law.