Eric Conn's preposterous little escape to Central America has cost him dearly. His sentence went up from 12 years to 27.
By the way, you might wonder what we in the Social Security bar thought about Conn back when he was practicing. The thing is that no one seemed to know the guy. When he got in trouble there were a lot of Social Security attorneys asking "Who's he?" The attorneys with larger practices mostly know or know of each other but not Conn. He was off on his own island. Everybody's reaction was "Why would you do that? Keep your nose clean and do your job and you can make a living and sleep at night." If you're trying to make a fortune practicing law, you've chosen the wrong career.
6 comments:
I think with guys like Conn, the rush comes not just from material success, but from feeling like they are getting one over on the system. The fact that they are engaged in criminal conduct making them tons of money AND getting away with it validated his ego.
You can make money practicing law in some areas of law practice but you won't get wealthy practicing disability law; you can make a living though. Ordinarily, you can feel good about the work you are doing.
That is telling that no one in this practice area knew Conn.
Could he end up as another celebrity felon who gains a pardon from 45?
Of course they would deny knowing him. No one else wants to be implicated in this mess. But I don't buy their denials for a second. This practice area is a small world.
@4:50 At least on the national scene, Conn seemed pretty obscure before his criminal conduct came to light. I have not heard of his involvement in prominent Social Security cases in Federal Court. He was not well known for academic achievement in the area, writing articles on Social Security law, or taking leadership roles in organizations. I've followed such things for about 20 years and frankly I had not heard his name before the headlines about his criminal activities came out. I laughed when one article described him as one of the country's "top disability lawyers."
He was, in those busy years of 2008-12, in the top 4 earning reps in the country according to SSA data. Only a few reps with a national presence were earning more fees. Which is amazing when you consider how small his practice area was, geographically.
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