NASHVILLE (AP) - A Nashville personal injury attorney has been accused of stealing more than $280,000 from his clients' settlement checks.

The Tennessean (http://tnne.ws/1OkAgaV ) reports that police last week seized computers and boxes of files from John L. Lowery's Nashville home. According to online court dockets, the 50-year-old attorney is charged with 16 felony counts of theft and forgery.

A search warrant affidavit says Lowery's clients, most of whom he represented after they were in car crashes, never received their settlement checks from insurance companies. Investigators say Lowery pocketed more than $280,000 from the checks.

Lowery was suspended from practicing law in May by the Board of Professional Responsibility, an arm of the Tennessee Supreme Court that oversees and disciplines attorneys.

Lowery's attorney, Jim Todd, said he could not comment on the pending case.