2014 Investigative Summary 5

Investigation of Alleged Failure to Maintain Active Membership in a State Bar;
Failure to Accurately Certify Bar Membership Status; Unauthorized Practice of Law

A DOJ component informed OPR that a DOJ  attorney had not been an active member of any state bar during his service to the Department and that the attorney signed the Department Attorney's Bar Re-Certification forms stating that he was an active bar member, when he was not. OPR conducted an investigation and found that until 2006, the DOJ attorney was in compliance with state bar rules that allowed inactive bar members to practice law in other jurisdictions. The state bar rules, however, changed in 2006. 

Based upon its investigation, OPR concluded that the DOJ attorney engaged in professional misconduct by acting in reckless disregard of his obligations imposed by Department policy, statute, and bar rules when he:

(1) failed to be authorized to practice law by maintaining an active bar membership in at least one state bar from 2007 to 2012;

(2) repeatedly and inaccurately certified on the Department's bar certification forms that he was an active member of the state bar;

(3) engaged in the unauthorized practice of law from 2007 to 2012. 

OPR referred its misconduct findings to the PMRU, which concluded that the DOJ attorney did not engage in misconduct. Rather, the PMRU concluded that although the facts in the matter presented a "razor-close question" as to the attorney's culpability, the DOJ attorney exercised extremely poor judgment by failing to maintain an active state bar license from 2007 to 2012. The DOJ attorney retired prior to the completion of OPR's investigation.