Discipline Notice - W. R. Van Camp

License Number: 5385
Member Name: W. R. Van Camp
Discipline Detail
Action: Suspension
Effective Date: 8/22/2002
RPC: 3.1 - Meritorious Claims and Contentions
3.3 - Candor Toward the Tribunal
8.4 (c) - Dishonesty, Fraud, Deceit or Misrepresentation
Discipline Notice:
Description: W. Russell Van Camp (WSBA No. 5385, admitted 1973), of Spokane, was suspended for six months by order of the Supreme Court following a hearing, effective August 22, 2002. Mr. Van Camp was reinstated to active practice on February 24, 2003. This discipline was based on his making a false statement to the bankruptcy tribunal in 1994.
In 1994, Mr. Van Camp was involved in litigation with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). In October 1994, the IRS threatened to levy some of Mr. Van Camp’s clients. Mr. Van Camp filed a Chapter 11 Bankruptcy petition to avoid the IRS levy. Although Mr. Van Camp’s residence and law practice were in Spokane, he listed his address in the bankruptcy petition as Denver Colorado. Additionally, Mr. Van Camp did not include all of his assets on the bankruptcy schedules. In October 1994, the Bankruptcy Trustee’s attorney filed a motion to dismiss Mr. Van Camp’s bankruptcy for improper venue and incomplete or deficient schedules. In November 1994, Mr. Van Camp filed an objection to the motion and requested a hearing. During the February 1995 hearing, the testimony established that the Colorado address on the bankruptcy petition was for Mail Boxes, Inc, that Mr. Van Camp was married and that both assets and debts were missing from the schedules. The Bankruptcy trustee agreed to a change in venue to the District of Eastern Washington. In June 1995, the Bankruptcy Court granted Mr. Van Camp’s motion to dismiss his petition. The Trustee referred the matter to the United States Attorney’s Office in Colorado for possible “bankruptcy fraud.” The U.S. Attorney did not prosecute.
Mr. Van Camp’s conduct violated RPCs 3.1, prohibiting lawyers from filing frivolous claims; 3.3 prohibiting lawyers from knowingly making false statements of material fact or law to the tribunal; and 8.4(c), prohibiting conduct involving dishonesty, fraud, deceit or misrepresentation.
Jean McElroy represented the Bar Association. F. Lawrence Taylor Jr. represented Mr. Van Camp. Dennis W. Morgan was the Hearing Officer.


In some cases, discipline search results will not reveal all disciplinary action relating to a Washington licensed legal professional, and may not display links to the official decision documents. Click the "Important Information" button below for further details.

Important Information +

This discipline search accesses notices of disciplinary action since 1984, and for cases decided in 2013 or later, also generally includes the official decision documents. The search does not contain pre-1984 notices or records, and may not contain the official decision documents in cases decided before 2013. To obtain other records of discipline, including pre-1984 discipline documents, please make a public records request.

The action listed on the discipline notice does not in all cases reflect the current status of the legal professional's license. Check the Legal Directory for current status information.