SPRINGFIELD – A formal complaint has been filed against a retired Danville attorney, alleging that he wrongfully took money belonging to a client and used it for his own purposes.

The complaint filed by the Illinois Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission on June 30 accuses William A. Young of conversion, wrongfully taking another person's property, and dishonesty, a violation of the attorney ethics code.

Young was served with the complaint on July 20 and has about 10 more days to respond to it. On Monday, he said he was planning to go to the Springfield office of the state agency that regulates attorneys later this week. He also said he believes the matter will be resolved.

Young, who will be 78 on Tuesday, became a licensed attorney on Oct. 24, 1958. He was in private practice in Danville and has been retired since Jan. 2, 2009.

Before now, he has never been the subject of a public disciplinary hearing, and he has never been disciplined by the Illinois Supreme Court, ARDC Deputy Administrator James Grogan said.

According to the complaint, Connie Glines Chavez hired Young in May 1992 to set up a trust in the amount of $6,186.15 for her granddaughter, Samantha Lynn Thompson. Under the agreement, a certificate of deposit for that amount would be purchased and a custodial account would be established at what's now Old National Bank in Danville, and Thompson would receive the principal and interest from the account when she turned 18.

The complaint alleges that on Feb. 9, 2004, Young redeemed the CD from the account and obtained a cashier's check made payable to Chavez in the amount of $6,186.15. Then he signed his name and forged Chavez's signature on the check. At no time did he inform Chavez or Thompson of those actions, and at no time did Chavez authorize them.

On or after Feb. 9, 2004, Young cashed the check at Iroquois Federal Savings and Loan in Danville and used the money for his own purposes, the complaint says. Then on Oct. 15, 2009, eight days before Thompson turned 18, Young deposited a check made payable to "cash" in the amount of $6,157.

"These are allegations only," Grogan said. "It's the burden of our office to prove the facts."

Now, the case either will go to trial in Springfield, or there will be a discipline on consent, "which is our version of a plea agreement," Grogan said. He added a pre-hearing date has not been set yet.

Young could be cleared of any wrong-doing. If he's not, the Illinois Supreme Court would decide what sanction to impose. Grogan said sanctions range from censure to disbarment.

"The Supreme Court really does consider every case on a case-by-case basis," he said, adding they take into consideration the facts, the victims, the harm, the lawyer, the motivation, among other things. "They will apply a past precedent and they will really look at each case as a unique situation."