David Groner, a New Iberia attorney running for Iberia Parish Tax Assessor, claims that the theft and breach of trust allegations made against him in a lawsuit filed last week amount to nothing more than political mudslinging by his opponents.

The lawsuit, filed in Iberia Parish on Monday, Sept. 16, alleges that Groner, while working as a trustee of the Abele Irrevocable Trust and attorney for the deceased Jaqueline Landry, misrepresented his billable hours and deposited a nearly-$5,000 check after the trust was already believed to be closed.

In the Petition for Trustee Accounting and Damages for Breach of Trust, The Gaudin Law Group, representing Lisa Pitarra, claims that Groner failed to keep records as required by law, charged an “unreasonable and excessive” amount for the work performed and acted against the sole interest of the trust’s beneficiaries.

Groner disagrees with the claims laid out in the lawsuit, questioning the motivation in bringing such a suit forward right before the November election.

“It’s a disgusting attempt at a political attack on me and my character by a lady I’ve never met, a law firm that I don’t know who is affiliated with a local lawyer who is a big proponent of one of my political opponents,” Groner said.

“These are false allegations, they will easily be thrown out in court, but the problem is I won’t be able to get to court until after the election to have them thrown out. I will intend on filing a countersuit once it’s thrown out against the people involved for the false and defamatory allegations that they’re making against me.”

The lawsuit expands on claims made regarding Groner’s alleged excessive legal fees, claiming that, if Groner’s own testimony is correct, his 272.78 billable hours would have to have occurred between May 2, 2023 and May 12, 2023, a timeframe that only has 240 hours available.

According to Groner, the question over how much work went into the trust succession is missing crucial context.

“It’s a mischaracterization of the evidence, that’s what it is,” said Groner. “This is a case involving two and a half years of legal work involving looking for assets all over the United States for an engineer who worked for various companies … that took many hours of work with a very difficult client. It’s a total mischaracterization of the case. The client was extremely pleased, she thanked me profusely for the work that I did and for the recovery that I made for her and she happily signed off on payments that were made.”

Groner claimed that he had yet to be served with the lawsuit as of Monday morning, prohibiting him from being able to respond through legal channels.

“I don’t have a chance to respond legally because it hasn’t even been served to me. It’s pretty outrageous that this would be a news story,” he said.

The case has already attracted attention from all sides of the political spectrum in Iberia Parish, even before it was officially filed last week. Photos of the unfiled lawsuit circulated days before the suit was filed, raising questions into not only Groner’s legal ethics, but also the political landscape in the Teche Area.

Claims regarding collusion between Groner and officials in the Iberia Parish Clerk of Court’s Office manifested themselves in questions over the timeline for the lawsuit filing to be added to Clerk Connect, the online multi-parish access portal. According to Iberia Parish Clerk of Court David Ditch, the delay in processing the paperwork was due to Judge Curtis Sigur recusing himself from the case and Judge Vincent Borne not having a chance to sign the documents. Anyone wishing to view the filings could still request a copy in person, however.

While Groner believes he won’t have a chance to fully address the allegations until after the election on November 5, he did say that he hopes to make progress on the case soon.

“We have a hearing set for October 11, which may gut most of their case,” he said. “The court should be throwing her off the case because she never belonged on it to begin with. They want it delayed until after the election and I’ve objected to continuances. I want it heard on the 11th because they filed false pleadings.”

Groner reiterated that he believes the timing of the lawsuit benefits his opponents in the assessor’s race, current Iberia Parish Assessor Ashlie Spiker and Raymond Lewis.

“Instead of focusing on the election and our qualifications and what we’ll do differently in office, now they’re trying to focus on a phony lawsuit that’s being used against me,” Groner said. “It’s disgusting.”

Spiker denied any knowledge of the plaintiffs in the suit, adding that her campaign strategy has always been to highlight her achievements and qualifications instead of publishing attacks on her opponent’s character.

“I have no intention of doing that,” Spiker said regarding alleged political motivation behind the lawsuit. “That was never part of our strategy and it won’t be. This election is about who is the most qualified to protect your property’s value, period. It’s unfortunate that the other two are less qualified so they resort to personal attacks.”