Anthony Louis Shiau

Findings — machine-extracted (anthropic-batch:claude-opus-4-8); verify against the decision

Anthony L. Shiau, a sole practitioner called to the bar in 2006, admitted to professional misconduct in a Rule 3-7.1 consent agreement approved May 29, 2023. Between May 2021 and March 2022 he improperly handled trust funds—depositing retainer funds into his general account before entitlement, withdrawing funds without delivering bills, and charging disbursements not yet incurred—and failed to verify out-of-country clients' identities by retaining a US agent. He explained the trust errors stemmed from a mistaken belief that funds could be held 'in trust' in his general account for administrative convenience and from software glitches; he obtained no personal benefit and returned all funds. No dishonesty was found. He consented to a four-week suspension (July 1-29, 2023).

Duties found breached:

• No improper use of client money
• Not misrepresent regulated status

Mitigating factors:

• No prior professional conduct record
• Remorseful and admitted all misconduct
• Sought early resolution through consent agreement process
• No personal financial benefit obtained; funds returned to trust/clients
• Undertook remedial steps: reviewed Trust Accounting Handbook, adopted checklists, completed relevant webinars, adopted agent verification agreement