Tennessee Supreme Court affirms Nashville lawyer's six-month suspension
The Tennessee Supreme Court has affirmed the six-month suspension of a Nashville lawyer who challenged the constitutionality of the state’s disciplinary process.
The court, in a ruling (PDF) Thursday, said lawyer Paul J. Walwyn’s claims were without merit, the Tennessean reports.
It also said that Walwyn’s arguments to the contrary were “rambling” and bordered on the incomprehensible.
Walwyn had been suspended for six months in 2013 by the state’s Board of Professional Responsibility over his handling of three criminal appeals. The sanction included 30 days of active suspension and five months’ probation.
The board found that Walwyn had violated several ethical rules, including requirements that lawyers be diligent, expedite litigation and be fair to opposing party and counsel.
Walwyn appealed the ruling to a chancery court, which affirmed the board’s decision early this year. He appealed that ruling to the state supreme court, in part on the grounds that the state’s attorney discipline process is unconstitutional. He also contended that the hearing panel that ruled against him had abused its discretion and acted arbitrarily and capriciously.
The court, in a unanimous opinion written by Justice Cornelia A. Clark, said that while the portion of Walwyn’s brief challenging the constitutionality of the state’s disciplinary process was “rambling and borders on incomprehensible,” it could be broken down into two broad categories, each of which were without merit.
It also rejected Walwyn’s claims that the hearing panel in the case against him had acted arbitrarily or abused its discretion.
