Sleazy lawyer, 72, suspended for tawdry act in his office with ‘vulnerable’ client facing murder rap: ruling

A Brooklyn attorney was slapped with a five-year suspension for receiving oral sex in his office from a client facing a murder charge, according to a court decision issued Wednesday.

Philip Smallman, 72, was hit with the hefty penalty after a New York Appellate Division found he engaged in the tawdry act with his “vulnerable” client who was a past childhood and adult sex trafficking victim, and had the homicide case hanging over her head in 2020.

The client, only identified by the initials CL, first met Smallman in 2017 when she pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder and was sent to Rikers Island ahead of trial.

But the attorney successfully got her released from jail, pointing to the COVID-19 pandemic and that she was a state-certified trafficking survivor.

Following her release, he learned the woman was not living with her mother, which was a condition of her release, and contacted her, according to the court docs tied to the disciplinary proceeding.  

During an exchange of messages in September 2020, the client sent Smallman photos of herself in which she was partially clothed, leading the lawyer to ask for more photos, per the court papers. When CL agreed, Smallman told her he was “physically aroused,” according to the court decision.

The two met in his Brooklyn office on Sept. 21, 2020 for about 15 minutes where “CL performed an act of fellatio on the (Smallman)” near the end of the meeting.

“CL approached him and got close to him, and extended her hand towards the respondent’s crotch,” the court papers detailed. “The respondent testified that he ‘let the situation continue to unfold.’”

Smallman testified the interactions with his client were “consensual” and “he expressed remorse for this misconduct, and stated that the conduct was aberrational,” the court docs state.

The disciplinary proceeding was first launched in July 2021 by a grievance committee and was then referred to a special referee by the court. The two misconduct charges against Smallman were sustained in July 2023 following hearings.

The appellate division for the second judicial department then confirmed the charges on Wednesday in its decision, in which it handed down its punishment.

It’s unclear what resolution was reached in the murder case, but Smallman only stopped representing her after he was slapped with the complaint, per Wednesday’s court docs.

Smallman tried to avoid suspension by noting he no longer represents female clients, attends weekly therapy sessions and Alcoholics Anonymous, was near retirement and had been helping family members with health problems.

But the five-year suspension was doled out by the panel of judges that agreed Smallman was in a position of power over CL, pointing out she was a past sex trafficking victim and relied on him during a murder case.

Smallman referred questions to his attorney. A legal rep for Smallman also did not return a phone call and email.  

His suspension is expected to start Dec. 13 and he can’t lodge a bid to practice law again until June 13, 2029.