Ex-San Antonio attorney Christopher “Chris” Pettit, accused of stealing his clients’ money, spent more than $250,000 in the 40 days after he filed for bankruptcy.
The spending is detailed in court exhibits that are part of the Chapter 11 trustee’s motion seeking an order directing Pettit to show why he should not be held in contempt for withdrawing $125,000 from his retirement account after filing for bankruptcy June 1.
Pettit, 55, transferred the retirement money into checking and savings accounts at Martha’s Vineyard Bank in Massachusetts. The court exhibits show he spent just shy of $252,000 from those accounts from June 2 through July 11.
“It may be consistent with his pre-bankruptcy lifestyle,” said San Antonio attorney Martin Seidler, who represents creditors in the case.
Pettit listed $27.8 million in assets and $115.2 million in debts in his personal bankruptcy, one of the largest ever filed in San Antonio. His law firm also filed.
The trustee — the court-appointed private attorney overseeing the assets — has said the retirement money should not be touched until the court rules it’s exempt from the bankruptcy estate.