A recent ethics complaint filed by The Florida Bar against attorney Daniel Uhlfelder reveals a behind-the-scenes story of misrepresentation and a stark rebuke from an appellate court, which accused him of abusing the judicial process. The complaint, stemming from a lawsuit Uhlfelder filed against Florida Governor Ron DeSantis in 2020, alleges that Uhlfelder acted unethically by, among other things, adding two attorneys to his appeal without their consent and then failing to remove them despite their requests.
The Initial Lawsuit
In March 2020, Daniel Uhlfelder sued Governor Ron DeSantis to compel the closure of beaches and later to issue a stay-at-home order in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. For a hearing on the Governor’s motion to dismiss, Uhlfelder was joined by two other attorneys, Marie A. Mattox and William Gautier Kitchen. Their agreement to act as co-counsel was oral and their involvement was limited to a single telephonic hearing on April 7, 2020. The next day, the circuit court dismissed the case.
An Appeal and Unknowing Co-Counsels
Uhlfelder immediately filed a notice of appeal to the First District Court of Appeal (“First DCA”). According to the Bar’s complaint, he electronically added the signatures of both Ms. Mattox and Mr. Kitchen to this and all subsequent appellate court filings without their knowledge or consent.
The two attorneys remained unaware they were listed as counsel on the appeal until November 13, 2020, when the First DCA not only denied the appeal but issued an order for Uhlfelder, Mattox, and Kitchen to show cause why they shouldn’t be sanctioned for filing a frivolous appeal.
“I Am Very Concerned About This”
Emails cited in the complaint show Ms. Mattox’s immediate and concerned reaction upon learning she was listed on the appeal. At 4:15 p.m. on the day of the court’s order, she emailed Uhlfelder: “I have not been a part of this appeal at all and did not know that my name was on the notice of appeal when it was filed. I just looked at all of the documents and I am very concerned about this. I need something filed with the Court acknowledging that I am not responsible for the appeal”.
She followed up minutes later, stating that she and Mr. Kitchen both recalled Uhlfelder mentioning he would appeal, “but that did not mean that we were going to be on the appeal”.
Uhlfelder replied, “I will be drafting an appropriate response. This clearly is political. If you all want to distance yourselves from me that’s fine”.
Despite Ms. Mattox’s requests for a filing to clarify that she and Kitchen were “inadvertently added as counsel on this appeal based on a mistake,” Uhlfelder never informed the court that they were not involved.
“Abuse of the Judicial Process”
On February 5, 2021, the First DCA issued a scathing order, affirming the dismissal of the lawsuit. The court found the appeal to be an “improper use of the appeal process,” stating that Uhlfelder’s briefs “merely expressed disagreement with Governor Ron DeSantis on non-justiciable policy questions”.
The court concluded that Uhlfelder “knew or should have known that their appeal was not rooted in the law” and had “improperly consumed this court’s resources as well as those of the Governor and his staff”. The order bluntly states, “Appellant and his counsel abused the judicial process” and notes that Uhlfelder publicly admitted he “filed this action to ‘draw attention’ to political issues, not to vindicate legal rights”.
The Florida Bar Complaint
The Florida Bar alleges that by affixing the other attorneys’ signatures without their consent, Uhlfelder misrepresented to the court that he had co-counsel when he did not. It further alleges he misrepresented to Ms. Mattox and Mr. Kitchen that he would correct the record and then failed to do so.
As a result, The Bar claims Uhlfelder has violated several Rules Regulating The Florida Bar, including:
- 3-4.3 (Misconduct and Minor Misconduct)
- 4-3.3 (Candor Toward the Tribunal)
- 4-8.4(c) (Conduct involving dishonesty, fraud, deceit, or misrepresentation)
- 4-8.4(d) (Conduct prejudicial to the administration of justice)
The complaint requests that Uhlfelder be appropriately disciplined for his conduct.