Gross used the name of another attorney when he diverted funds from the closing into a personal account, according to the prosecutor
The case against Neil Gross will be handled in the Morris County Courthouse. (Robert Sciarrino | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com)MOUNT OLIVE -- A disbarred Morris County attorney has been charged with stealing $75,000 during a real estate closing in which he used the name of another attorney, according to the Morris County Prosecutor's Office.
Neil Gross, 47, of Livingston, a former partner in the Mount Olive law firm of Ward & Gross, was charged with theft, identity theft, forgery and unauthorized practice of law, said Morris County Prosecutor Fredric Knapp.
Gross was suspended from practicing law in October 2012 and subsequently disbarred in October 2014 for a series of violations of professional conduct, Knapp said.
During a real estate closing in Mount Olive in 2013, while Gross' law practice was suspended, he used the name of another attorney, Knapp said.
As part of the closing on a property in Livingston, Gross held more than $75,000 in a trust account, but did not distribute the money to the property seller, according to Knapp.
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Gross "diverted" the funds to a personal account while forging the name of the other attorney, Knapp said.
The prosecutor's office received a referral of this incident from the New Jersey Lawyers' Fund for Client Protection in July 2015, Knapp said.
Following an investigation by the Morris prosecutor's financial crimes unit, charges against Gross were signed Friday by Morris County Prosecutor's Detective Joseph Soulias, Knapp said.
Gross was released on his own recognizance pending an appearance that will be scheduled in Superior Court in Morristown, Knapp said.
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