Prominent Columbus attorney disbarred in Supreme Court decision

COLUMBUS, Ga. (WTVM) - A prominent Columbus attorney is now disbarred from practicing law in the state of Georgia.

Attorney Michael Eddings and his wife Cythinia say they believe the judge to have read the letter aloud in open court, in front of his client and their family, was meant to embarrass him.

Eddings says they were all waiting for court to start at 9 a.m. Forty-five minutes later, the judge delivered the news by reading the letter from the Georgia Bar Association.

In a 22-page letter, it cites three separate violations by Eddings, where he contacted witnesses in cases without consent from their lawyers -- two previous incidents where he received fines as a penalty.

The third one that promoted the disbarment is a tape-recorded interview from July 2017 by Eddings with a material witness who had been charged with making a false statement about a person’s death.

The client was represented by a former defense attorney, Stacey Jackson, now the District Attorney in Columbus.

The Bar claims Eddings did not have permission from Jackson to interview his client.

However, Eddings says that is not true.

“The question was, ‘Did Eddings call you?’ Jackson’s answer was ‘No.’ The first question, he lied. When I got to cross-examine him, I said, ‘How you explain the phone records, Mr. Jackson?’” said Eddings.

Jackson said, “The Supreme Court’s decision is 22 pages, and it speaks for itself.”

Chief Gil McBride, who announced the disbarment in court, said he could not comment on the matter.

Copyright 2022 WTVM. All rights reserved.