A Damariscotta attorney was suspended this week over allegations that he was “grooming and coercing” a wealthy and vulnerable client into granting him access to their estate and went on to misappropriate their finances.

The Board of Overseers of the Bar filed an ex parte petition on Tuesday, calling for Peter Drum, 51, of Newcastle, to be immediately suspended. A Maine Supreme Judicial Court associate justice ordered his suspension on Thursday.

Due to the emergency basis of the board’s suspension request, Drum did not get a chance to respond to the allegations before the decision was made.

The board’s petition argued that time was of the essence.

“The concern is that Drum has misappropriated client money and continues to have access to such funds which are susceptible to further misappropriation or embezzlement in the event that he receives prior notice to this request for his suspension,” the petition states.

It also claims Drum recently told a prospective client that he is in the process of moving to Canada.

Attempts to reach Drum on Friday evening were unsuccessful.

ALLEGATIONS

According to the petition, the executive director of an assisted living facility for seniors in Newcastle filed a complaint on Jan. 14, expressing concerns for the safety of a resident who was a client of Drum’s.

The director said Drum “presented paperwork naming himself the Financial and Medical (power of attorney) of a person who does not have the capacity to make decisions,” according to the petition.

The director of the assisted living facility “believed that Drum had been ‘grooming and coercing'” the wealthy client, the petition states, and argued he had convinced the client to leave their long-time attorney and give Drum “total control” of their financial holdings.

The director said they had contacted Adult Protective Services, alleging Drum’s actions constituted financial abuse and coercion.

The director and the client’s former attorney both provided information on the client’s “mental and physical health,” according to the petition. The former attorney also expressed concern over financial transactions authorized by the client that named Drum as the designated beneficiary, the petition states.

The petition does not provide details on the client’s health — other than saying they are “believed to have diminished capacity” — nor the alleged financial transactions. It states that those details are contained in a confidential affidavit.

The petition states that Drum was asked by the Bar on March 13 to identify all payments made by the client to himself or another party at his request within the past two years. It also asked that he provide specific details on those transactions, such as the amount of money paid, when those payments were made and what bank or other financial accounts were involved.

Drum pleaded the Fifth Amendment in response to those requests, according to the petition. However, he denied transferring money on the client’s behalf or receiving gifts from the client, directly or through others, over the past two years, the petition states.

DECISION & PAST CONDUCT

The associate justice suspended Drum on Thursday on the grounds that his “misconduct serves as an imminent threat to clients, the public and to the administration of justice.”

Drum also was ordered to vacate his law offices, cease operating related websites and social media accounts, and surrender all client files, keys to affiliated facilities and any electronic devices he used to practice law. He was also ordered to cooperate with a court-appointed receiver and is not allowed to leave Maine until all those orders are met, according to the associate justice’s decision.

The board’s ex parte petition claims Drum had already begun to wind down his law practice “in anticipation that a receiver may be appointed.”

Drum was also investigated by the Board of Overseers in 2020 after a client filed a complaint alleging the attorney failed to provide legal opinions or answer more than a dozen of their questions over the course of several months.

Drum acknowledged that he did not fulfill his duty to his client within a reasonable amount of time, citing staffing turnovers and a broken leg, according to the board’s findings. That client ultimately requested that the complaint be dismissed and that Drum be let off with a warning after the attorney accepted responsibility for their actions and returned a $1,000 retainer.