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facts, we shall not hold Mr. Wickersham to either a high or low
standard while evaluating his actions.
C. Context of Events/Pattern of Conduct
Respondent argues that Mr. Wickersham has a history of using
his knowledge and sophistication to take advantage of others for
personal gain. Respondent points to two transactions: (1) Mr.
Wickersham's securing a letter of credit for Mr. Winfree and (2)
Mr. Wickersham's purchasing property from Ms. Stark at a reduced
price.
1. The Letter of Credit
To secure the loan used to fund Elco, each of the four
owners was required to put up a letter of credit. Mr. Winfree's
bank agreed to issue him a letter of credit, and it was going to
charge him approximately $1,500 for this service. Mr. Wickersham
offered to get Mr. Winfree a letter of credit for the same price,
and Mr. Winfree accepted. Mr. Winfree's testimony suggests that
Mr. Winfree allowed Mr. Wickersham, rather than the bank, to make
a profit on the letter of credit as a favor to Mr. Wickersham and
that Mr. Wickersham did not take advantage of Mr. Winfree.4
4 Mr. Winfree testified as follows:
And I came back and told Mr. Wickersham that I was
ready to go; I had my letter of credit okayed. And he
said, Well how much are they going to charge you? And
I told him. And he said, Well, why don't you let me
make that money?
(continued...)
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