Robert M. Owens




Robert M. Owens is a Delaware, Ohio lawyer who ran as an independent candidate for Ohio Attorney General in the November 4, 2008 election. Owens currently serves on the national council of The John Birch Society.

Education

Owens graduated with honors from Ohio Wesleyan University, with a major in history and a minor in journalism. Owens studied history and political science at Oxford University. Owens obtained his law degree with honors from the Capital University Law School.

Ohio Attorney General campaign

The special election for attorney general was created when the previous officeholder, Democrat Marc Dann resigned on May 14, 2008. On May 28, Ohio Governor Ted Strickland appointed Nancy H. Rogers, the Dean of The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law, to fill the post until a replacement takes office following the special election. Owens officially announced his candidacy at a press conference at the Ohio Statehouse on June 10, 2008.
On May 27, 2008, Owens filed a nominating petition with over 1300 signatures from 44 of Ohio's 88 counties. Ohio law requires 750 valid signatures to be presented within 10 days of the office being vacated in order for an independent to appear on the ballot.
Early in the campaign, it was suggested that Owens may be ineligible to run as an independent due to previously voting in Republican primary elections.
Owens was endorsed by the Constitution Party, Libertarian Party of Ohio, as well as other minor parties.
Owens received 5% of the vote.

Political activity

Owens is a member of the Delaware City Charter Review Commission, a panel tasked with reviewing and suggesting changes to the City Charter. He filed to run for Attorney General again in 2010 under a Constitution Party label.

Law license suspension for misconduct

The Ohio Board of Professional Conduct recommended to the Ohio Supreme Court to suspend Owens law license for 6 months after an investigation in to the events of a spousal support payment made by Owens on behalf of a client.
The recommended sanctions resulted from Owens misconduct in paying a clients overdue spousal support payment of $58,242.93 from his IOLTA client trust account, which holds other client funds, to the Delaware County Child Support Enforcement Agency.
Subsequently, Owens placed a "stop payment" on the check which caused the check to the Child Support Enforcement Agency to bounce. The non-sufficient fund payment obtained the premature release of his client from incarceration at the Delaware County Jail,
The Board of Profession Conduct found that Owens's conduct violated three professional conduct rules.
  1. The board found that Owens violated Professional Conduct Rule 8.4 by falsely representing that his client had paid his past due spousal support, when he had not.
  2. The board found that Owens violated Professional Conduct Rule 8.4 by commencing and participating in a series of events that further delayed the clients ex-wife long-overdue spousal support and necessitated further court proceedings to collect the past due amount.
  3. The board found that Owens violated Professional Conduct Rule 8.4 by recklessly placing the funds of 19 clients in jeopardy.
On December 19, 2018 after Owens mounted a failed appeal before the Ohio Supreme Court, the court was not "...convinced that the six-month suspension recommended by the board is the appropriate sanction for Owens’s misconduct" and recommended a year suspension from practicing law. Owens suspension was stayed on the conditions that he must complete a two-hour continuing education class on client-trust-account management and serve a one-year period of monitored probation.

Personal life

Owens resides in Delaware, Ohio. He is married to Teri Owens and has one child.