Minneapolis lawyer agrees to disbarment

A Minneapolis attorney who kept the proceeds from the sale of a client's house and tried to conceal that fact agreed to disbarment last week, the Office of Lawyers Professional Responsibility announced on Tuesday. In August, Deno W. Berndt received $95,025 that he was supposed to pass on to a client. Berndt "took affirmative steps to conceal receipt of the funds" and gave a bad check to the client, the order said. To date, Berndt has repaid $35,350. Berndt was admonished in 1998 for failing to file court documents and communicate with a client in a timely fashion. In 2006, he was reprimanded and placed on probation for two years after neglecting client matters and making misrepresentations to clients. The Office of Lawyers Professional Responsibility asked the Supreme Court last week to disbar Berndt. Berndt consented to the petition.