A former attorney who admitted neglecting a client’s case and then inadvertently overbilling her is now seeking reinstatement of his Iowa law license.
In January 2025, attorney Matthew Boles of Des Moines consented to the suspension of his law license for up to two years. The Iowa Supreme Court then imposed a six-month suspension.
Court records show the suspension was tied to Boles’ handling of a lawsuit brought by a woman who was severely injured in a 2015 boating collision on the Lake of the Ozarks in Missouri. With Boles as her attorney, the woman pursed legal action against the operator of the other boat and was able to secure a $1,360,000 settlement in the case.
Once the settlement was paid out, Boles was to retain one-third of the amount as his fee, pay any outstanding medical bills or Medicaid liens, and route the remainder to his client. However, there was a mix-up with regard to the medical bills that resulted in one hospital returning a check for payment and in Boles charging his client $47,586 in fees above the agreed amount. At the same time, Boles also neglected to provide his client with an accounting of all the settlement disbursements.
Two years later, in September 2019, the client contacted Boles after she was denied a home equity loan due to money she still owed Medicaid for medical care related to the boating accident. Boles allegedly promised to resolve the issue but didn’t write to Medicaid until July 2021.
In a sworn statement he later provided the court, Boles indicated it was only after the client asked for a full accounting of the settlement proceeds that he reviewed the records and “realized I had received more than the agreed-upon attorney fee.” At that point, he said, he used his own funds to pay his client’s debt to Medicaid.
The Iowa Supreme Court Attorney Disciplinary Board later charged Boles with retaining more funds than permitted by his contingency-fee agreement — money, the board said, that should have instead been used to resolve the client’s debt to Medicaid. The matter was resolved in January with the six-month suspension of his law license.
At the time, the disciplinary board had argued that an 18-month suspension was warranted, noting prior disciplinary action for similar conduct.
Court records show that in 2000, Boles was given a private admonition for neglect of a client matter. In 2004, he received a private admonition for representing a client without a clear fee agreement in place.
In 2012, Boles’ law license was suspended for 30 days for misconduct primarily related to billing and accounting practices. In that case, the disciplinary board alleged Boles neglected one incarcerated client’s post-conviction relief case, charged several other clients unreasonable fees, failed to promptly return unearned fees, and failed to properly handle a client’s property.
Last month, Boles, who had been licensed to practice law in Iowa since 1993, filed an application for reinstatement of his law license. Records from the Iowa Judicial Branch indicate the request has yet to be acted upon by the Iowa Supreme Court and that Boles’ license remains suspended.
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This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Former Des Moines attorney seeks reinstatement of his law license
