Civil suit against former Sterling attorney dismissed

MORRISON – A civil suit filed against a former Sterling attorney who pleaded guilty to misdemeanor battery after being charged with sexually assaulting two clients has reached a settlement and been dismissed.

Michael Lancaster, 66, was arrested and charged Oct. 10, 2019, with two counts of criminal sexual assault and one count of unlawful restraint, and on Oct. 29, 2019, with one count of criminal sexual assault. He faced four to 15 years on the assault charges.

Per his plea agreement, he was to be sentenced May 5 in Whiteside County Court to one and a half years conditional discharge on an amended charge of battery, while the other three charges in the first case and the second case in its entirety were dismissed.

If Lancaster follows the terms of his discharge, the conviction will not remain on his record.

He also agreed not to renew his license to practice law.

In August 2021, the second plaintiff sued Lancaster for malpractice; his partner, John E. Miller, and their firm, Miller & Lancaster P.C., then at 15 E. Third St. were sued for negligence.

The suit was dismissed April 10 with prejudice, meaning it cannot be refiled under those accusations, pursuant to a settlement that is not a matter of public record, court records show.

In her suit, the plaintiff said she hired Lancaster on June 1, 2019. On that Sept. 30, he asked her to meet him at the office at 4:30 p.m. to discuss her case.

Unbeknownst to her, the office closed at that time, and when she arrived, he locked the front door, took her into his office and raped her, according to the suit.

It was not the first time he sexually assaulted a client, according to the suit, so Miller and the firm “knew or should have known that defendant Lancaster was a danger to third persons and was under a duty to protect its clients ... from defendant Lancaster.”

According to Illinois State Bar records, both Lancaster and Miller retired in 2019. Lancaster handled divorce, personal injury, civil and criminal defense cases.