Lawyer Discipline

Should disbarred lawyers be given second chances?

Currently, disbarment is always permanent in New Jersey and a minority of other states. In some other states, including Louisiana, disbarment can either be permanent or temporary. But in the majority of states and in the District of Columbia, disbarred lawyers may apply for readmission after a period of time—often at least five years.

Dec 1, 2022 1:10 AM CST

Ohio lawyer is accused of tossing poop-filled Pringles can into parking lot of victims advocacy center

An Ohio lawyer has been accused in an ethics complaint of depositing his feces into a potato chip can and then tossing it into the parking lot of a victims advocacy center.

Nov 23, 2022 11:46 AM CST

Ex-lawyer sentenced for Molotov cocktail toss; she’s ‘a remarkable person who did a terrible thing,’ judge says

A disbarred tenants lawyer was sentenced Friday to 15 months in prison for tossing a Molotov cocktail into an unoccupied police car during May 2020 racial justice demonstrations in New York.

Nov 21, 2022 3:46 PM CST

Texas lawyer is accused of spiking wife’s drinks with abortion drug

A Texas lawyer is facing two charges for allegedly spiking his wife’s drinks with an abortion drug after they began trying to reconcile their marriage.

Nov 17, 2022 1:23 PM CST

2 lawyers are disbarred for conspiring to throw Molotov cocktail at empty police car

A former law firm associate at Pryor Cashman and a public-interest lawyer have been disbarred following their guilty pleas for conspiring to toss a Molotov cocktail at an empty police car during New York protests in 2020.

Nov 16, 2022 12:37 PM CST

Lawyer is disbarred for mishandling client check, recording trial with concealed-camera eyeglasses

A New York lawyer has been disbarred in connection with a loan from a client, the wrongful use of funds earmarked for a transcript and a secret court recording.

Nov 9, 2022 9:31 AM CST

Lawyer is disbarred and suspended after he is accused of billing over 24 hours per day

A West Virginia lawyer has been sanctioned after he was accused of billing more than 24 hours in a day, multiple times, for his representation of indigent clients.

Nov 8, 2022 3:13 PM CST

California bar opened 205 ethics matters about this lawyer, who wasn’t disbarred until this year

The State Bar of California opened 205 disciplinary matters over four decades about lawyer Tom Girardi, who was disbarred in June after he was accused of failing to pay settlement funds to clients in three separate matters.

Nov 7, 2022 11:34 AM CST

Lawyer accused of relying on staffer to take CLE classes gets sanction reprieve if he accepts indigent cases

A solo practitioner in Maine may find it difficult to comply with the terms of an ethics sanction imposed for relying on his assistant to take his continuing legal education classes.

Oct 27, 2022 9:05 AM CDT

Lawyer is disbarred after email falsely claims he is dead

A California lawyer has been disbarred after someone used his email address to inform ethics regulators that he had died.

Oct 10, 2022 9:15 AM CDT

California bar announces probes of 2 prominent lawyers after report on mishandled settlement funds

The State Bar of California announced Tuesday that it is investigating two prominent Los Angeles lawyers in connection with the mishandled distribution of settlement funds paid by insurers for descendants of Armenian genocide victims.

Sep 30, 2022 10:37 AM CDT

Suspension ordered for lawyer accused of sending ‘abusive and aggressive’ emails

The Illinois Supreme Court has ordered the suspension of a Chicago lawyer for sending harassing and threatening emails deemed to be “abusive and aggressive” by a disciplinary hearing board.

Sep 28, 2022 8:45 AM CDT

Former BigLaw associate is accused of lying about time spent on document review project

A former Dentons associate is accused in an ethics complaint of falsely claiming that he spent 277 hours to review 425 documents for a client responding to a discovery request.

Sep 26, 2022 9:17 AM CDT

After suspension, Judicial Watch founder alleges legal ‘jihad’ to remove pro-Trump lawyers

Judicial Watch founder Larry Klayman has gone on the offensive after his 18-month suspension for ethics violations while representing a woman in a lawsuit against Voice of America.

Sep 20, 2022 9:38 AM CDT

Lawyer who exclaimed ‘gadzooks’ at trial delayed but didn’t disrupt justice, ethics hearing board says

Updated: A suburban Chicago lawyer who clashed with a judge in an effort to make a record and exclaimed “gadzooks” in response to her ruling should be reprimanded, according to a recommendation by an ethics hearing board.

Sep 15, 2022 8:48 AM CDT