MELODY R. NERY v. ATTY. GLICERIO A. SAMPANA

FACTS:

Melody R. Nery filed a disbarment complaint against Atty. Glicerio A. Sampana for failing to file her petition for adoption despite receiving legal fees and for making her believe that the petition was already filed. Nery engaged Sampana's services in June 2008 for the annulment of her marriage and for her adoption by an alien adopter. The petition for annulment was granted, and Nery paid Sampana P200,000.00. For the adoption case, Sampana asked Nery if she had an aunt they could represent as the wife of her alien adopter. Sampana gave Nery a blurred copy of a marriage contract for her adoption. Nery paid Sampana P100,000.00 in installments. Sampana sent Nery a text message on February 14, 2009, informing her that he had filed the petition for adoption and it was already published. Sampana also informed Nery that they needed to rehearse before the hearing. Sampana told Nery that the hearing was set on March 5, 2010, and later claimed that her presence was no longer necessary because the hearing was only jurisdictional. Nery discovered on March 11, 2010, that no petition for adoption was filed in the court. She met with Sampana, demanded a reimbursement of the P100,000.00 she paid him, but Sampana agreed to reimburse her after deducting the filing fee worth P12,000.00. Nery repeatedly demanded reimbursement but was ignored. The Integrated Bar of the Philippines Commission on Bar Discipline (IBP-CBD) found Sampana guilty of malpractice for failing to file the petition for adoption and recommended a three-month suspension from the practice of law.

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