as Amburgey's counsel for more than two months after he was discharged; and finally, he failed to render competent legal services to Amburgey in his workers' compensation case. In light of these facts, the referee concluded that Spann violated twenty provisions of the Rules Regulating The Florida Bar.[2]
As to Spann's representation of Leonard Champagne, the record reflects that, in August 1988, Spann entered into settlement negotiations on Champagne's behalf with Southern Bell's general counsel. Spann negotiated an agreement for Champagne and Southern Bell forwarded the appropriate release forms to Spann's office. However, when Spann could not locate Champagne to execute the releases, he instructed one of his nonlawyer employees to forge Champagne's signature on the forms. Spann then notarized the forged signatures as Champagne's. Champagne had not authorizedand district attorneys.

To say that the city has a problem is an understatement. While the city of Allegheny, Pennsylvania, filed 200 petitions for civil asset forfeiture from 2008 to 2011, Philadelphia filed 6,560 petitions—in 2011 alone. A report from the Philadelphia Inquirer also found that the city brought in more than $64 million in seized property from 2004 to 2014, which is almost twice the amount raised by cities like Brooklyn, New York, and Los Angeles, California.

A 2015 report from the American Civil Liberties Union noted that “an estimated 32 percent of cash forfeitures are not supported by a conviction,” which means that more than $1 million is forfeited every year from innocent residents in Philadelphia:

“Worrying evidence suggests that the profits and sweeping powers offered by civil forfeiture