TOMS RIVER — A disbarred New Jersey attorney, now living in Utah, admitted Monday to posing as a licensed lawyer and defrauding multiple Ocean County victims out of more than $70,000, authorities said.
Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer announced that David T. Schlendorf, 54, of Holladay, Utah, pleaded guilty April 27 to five counts of theft by deception and one count of unauthorized practice of law before Superior Court Judge Guy P. Ryan.
Prosecutors said they will seek a probationary sentence when Schlendorf is sentenced July 17, along with a requirement that he have no contact with his victims. He is also expected to pay restitution totaling $70,755.
An investigation by the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Economic Crime Squad and the Toms River Township Police Department found that in March 2025, a Toms River resident paid Schlendorf about $10,000 to handle a legal matter. Authorities determined Schlendorf falsely claimed to be a licensed attorney, despite having been disbarred in New Jersey in December 2022.
Schlendorf was arrested in Toms River on Oct. 7, 2025, by county and local detectives. He was lodged in the Ocean County Jail and later released under New Jersey’s bail reform guidelines.
Further investigation revealed that between January 2023 and September 2025, five additional victims hired Schlendorf for legal representation, paying him a combined total of about $60,000. Those additional charges were filed via summons as the case moved through Ocean County Superior Court.
Billhimer credited Supervising Assistant Prosecutor Shanon Chant-Berry, who is prosecuting the case, along with members of the Economic Crime Squad and Toms River detectives for their work.
