The privilege of practicing law has been temporarily revoked for prominent Albany, Georgia, attorney Joseph “Joe” Durham Jr. The move came in September 2025, when Durham filed a request for a voluntary temporary suspension of his license, immediately following the State Bar of Georgia’s petition for his emergency removal.
The disciplinary petition, which alleges that Durham’s conduct poses a “substantial threat of harm to his clients and the public,” details a stunning and protracted pattern of ethical and criminal misconduct, including the alleged misappropriation of over $2 million in client settlement funds. Durham now faces the likely prospect of permanent disbarment as three separate disciplinary petitions move forward to the Supreme Court.
The Core Allegation: Client Fund Conversion
The most damaging claims against Durham center on his wholesale abuse of the attorney-client trust relationship and the integrity of the IOLTA (trust) account system:
- Misappropriation and “Kiting”: Durham is accused of actively converting and misusing funds recovered for his clients. In one case, he allegedly received a $1.5 million settlement but used a significant portion of that money to pay his personal debts or obligations to other clients, a practice known as “kiting”—using new client money to cover old debts.
- Lying About Settlements: In a wrongful death case with a $625,000 settlement, Durham allegedly told a client he had settled the matter for $650,000, misrepresenting the final amount. He also failed to inform clients promptly about settlements or distribute funds correctly.
- Trust Account Abuse: Durham allegedly transferred client funds to his personal business accounts, such as “Strategic Wealth Planners” LLC, and is accused of using improperly constituted IOLTA accounts with incorrect Tax ID numbers, demonstrating a profound failure to safeguard client money.
Beyond Fraud: Falsification and Intimidation
The charges against Durham extend past financial misconduct and include attempts to obstruct justice and harass former clients:
- Falsifying Documents: He is accused of falsifying documents and client signatures to conceal his financial manipulations.
- Extortionary Threats: One petition alleges Durham sent a letter to a family threatening to “publicize scandalous allegations” (irrelevant to their lawsuit) if the family failed to pay him $250,000.
- Harassment and Sanctions: Durham is accused of filing frivolous lawsuits aimed at harassing individuals, including suing a family for defamation after they filed grievances against him. In one case, his frivolous actions led a trial court to sanction him to pay nearly $50,000 in opposing attorney’s fees.
The Current Status: Temporary Suspension and Looming Disbarment
Faced with the State Bar’s petition for emergency suspension—and a Special Master’s recommendation supporting it—Durham chose to file a Petition for Voluntary Discipline.
- Admission of Threat: In this filing, Durham made a crucial admission: he conceded that the State Bar had established a factual basis for a finding that he poses a “substantial threat of harm to his clients or the public” due to his management of funds.
- Conditions: His license is now temporarily suspended. He is barred from taking new clients and must cooperate with a full forensic audit of his bank accounts.
While the suspension is temporary, the weight of the admitted allegations—misappropriation of client funds, pervasive dishonesty, and harassment—makes permanent disbarment the widely anticipated final outcome once the three pending disciplinary petitions are fully adjudicated by the Georgia Supreme Court.
Conclusion: A Crisis of Trust
The case of Joe Durham Jr. is a painful illustration of what happens when a lawyer’s greed overwhelms their ethical duty. The sheer volume and severity of the allegations—from stealing millions in client settlements to falsifying signatures and engaging in extortionary threats—represent a catastrophic failure of integrity. The temporary suspension, and the likely permanent disbarment to follow, serves as an essential and necessary action by the State Bar of Georgia to protect the public and uphold the sacred trust placed in every practicing attorney.