In letter, DePerno accuses Leonard of 'egregious violation,' reveals investigation

Lansing — Republican attorney general hopeful Matt DePerno accused his GOP convention opponent Tom Leonard of violating attorney-client confidentiality while revealing an investigation into his own conduct by a state commission, according to a letter obtained by The Detroit News.

The letter, which becomes public on a key day in the high-profile attorney general race, was written by DePerno and addressed to a lawyer with the law firm Leonard works for, Plunkett Cooney. Leonard is a partner in the firm's Lansing office, serving as group leader for its government relations, public policy and regulatory practice.

But Leonard and others on Monday rejected DePerno's claims. Leonard appeared to only release information that had already been made public.

DePerno, a lawyer from Kalamazoo, said he had retained Plunkett Cooney to represent him in multiple Michigan Attorney Grievance Commission investigations. One of the probes involved his handling of litigation over the 2020 election in Antrim County, the letter said.

The commission handles allegations of attorney misconduct and keeps its investigations secret as they unfold. In the letter, DePerno labeled the probe into his Antrim County case "nonsense."

Leonard, the former speaker of the Michigan House, has repeatedly called on DePerno to reveal what he did with nearly $400,000 he raised as he questioned the results and the administration of the election in Antrim County.

"Under no circumstance should one of my lawyers publicly attack me, regardless of whether the information is false," DePerno wrote in the letter. "Further, he knows that (as a client) I have no interest in making these investigations public; yet he has publicly called on me to release information, making them public.

"This is an egregious violation of the standard and duty of care."

In the letter, DePerno claimed Leonard violated a rule of professional conduct, stating lawyers should not reveal secrets of a client "to the disadvantage of the client."

Leonard rejected the accusation in a Facebook post Monday morning, saying DePerno apparently "thinks just because he hired our firm for help that I’m somehow not allowed to criticize him."

"Matt is like a boxer agreeing to get in the ring, taking a hit, and then running to the cops to file assault charges," Leonard added. "It’s politically motivated and, honestly, a little pathetic. Whatever legal help and guidance Matt DePerno needs from my coworkers is between him and them. I have nothing to do with his case. I know nothing about it. I am just going to continue telling you the truth and calling it as I see it in this race."

During a debate in March, Leonard first called on DePerno to detail what happened with about $400,000 he raised through an "Election Fraud Defense Fund" as he pursued claims of wrongdoing in the 2020 presidential vote.

DePerno, who represented an Antrim County resident in a lawsuit over the election, has so far refused to fulfill the request, saying he can't release anything without his client's permission.

As of July 26, 2021, a web page for his fund, which asked donors to make checks payable to DePerno, reported having collected $389,050. The fund was established by DePerno "to defend and to protect the integrity of elections in the United States," according to the page.

Information about DePerno's fundraising had been public, and it doesn't appear that Leonard has shared secret information.

"If it's public information, there's no privilege to break," said Steven Liedel, a longtime Michigan lawyer with the firm Dykema.

But Liedel, who served as general counsel to Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s transition team, cautioned that there are other legal rules that say lawyers have a duty of loyalty to their client that could be entangled in the claims against Leonard.

It's an unusual situation, Liedel said, to have someone who works for a law firm running against someone the law firm is representing. 

In his letter dated Thursday to Michael Ashcraft, co-leader of Plunkett Cooney's professional liability practice group, DePerno said an official with the Michigan Attorney Grievance Commission revealed the investigation into the Antrim County case had been initiated by the Legislature, which is controlled by Republicans.

Leonard denied Monday having any involvement in the Legislature's actions.

"Mr. Leonard is the former speaker of the House," DePerno wrote in his letter. "It appears he used his association with his elected friends in the Legislature to cause MAGC to investigate me (one of Plunkett Cooney's clients and therefore one of Mr. Leonard's clients) for political reasons."

In 2021, the GOP-controlled Senate Oversight Committee issued a report on the election, calling for an investigation into individuals who've pushed false claims about the 2020 election to raise money or publicity for themselves. The committee didn't mention DePerno in its recommendation but did accuse him of spreading false information.

Asked if Leonard had a role in the Senate report, Senate Oversight Chairman Ed McBroom, R-Vulcan, said no, labeling the allegation "amusing."

"I can't think of a single ... occasion where he would have anything to do with it," McBroom added about Leonard. "He wasn't even a candidate for AG at the time."

DePerno has a history of flinging out wild accusations to distract from the weakness of his own arguments, McBroom said.

In his letter on Thursday, DePerno suggested that the Attorney Grievance Commission could open an investigation into him because the commission's employees read an article about the fundraising.

"Mr. Leonard owes me an apology," DePerno added. "He also must make a public statement acknowledging his duty to me as a client of Plunkett Cooney. He must retract his false allegations and allegations that put me at risk."

The Attorney Grievance Commission didn't immediately respond Monday morning to a request for comment.

DePerno called for Plunkett Cooney to conduct an investigation into the source of the attorney grievance concerning the Antrim County case and into Leonard's comments. Leonard should be placed on leave or be terminated, DePerno added.

Ashcraft of Plunkett Cooney didn't immediately respond to a request for comment from The Detroit News on Monday morning. Thomas Vincent, president and CEO of Plunkett Cooney, said Leonard has no access to information about DePerno's matters and there is a firewall in place.

"I don't even have access to the matters, and I am the president and CEO of the firm," Vincent said. "The sources that Tom Leonard relied upon are absolutely outside of Plunkett Cooney."

But John Yob, a political consultant who's working with DePerno, alleged Monday that Leonard had "put his law license at risk."

"His desperate demands to account for money that his own firm partially collected is perhaps the worst campaign mistake in Michigan history," Yob said. "Leonard has a dark cloud hanging over him that makes him unelectable in November and unnominatable in August."

Later Monday evening, Republican precinct delegates will gather across the state for county conventions. The events are key in the race for the attorney general nomination because at them, Republicans choose which delegates get to participate in the GOP's April 23 endorsement convention in Grand Rapids.

At that state convention, Republicans will pick which GOP attorney general candidate to support. In the running are DePerno, Leonard and state Rep. Ryan Berman of Commerce Township.

Former President Donald Trump has endorsed DePerno.

The winner of the Republican attorney general nomination will take on Democratic Attorney General Dana Nessel in November.

cmauger@detroitnews.com