2024 Investigative Summary 2

INVESTIGATION OF ALLEGED FAILURE TO MAINTAIN ACTIVE BAR MEMBERSHIP

A U.S. Attorney’s Office reported to OPR that an attorney’s only active bar membership had previously been suspended for about a month because the attorney failed to timely complete his bar membership’s continuing legal education requirement.  OPR determined that the attorney’s active bar membership had been suspended during two additional periods because the attorney had failed to timely pay his annual bar membership dues. 

OPR conducted an investigation and concluded that the attorney committed professional misconduct by acting in reckless disregard of his unambiguous obligation under Department policy to continuously maintain an active bar membership in at least one state, a territory, or the District of Columbia, while employed as a Department attorney.  OPR found that the attorney should have known, based on his many years as a member of the bar and Department attorney, that his failure to timely pay his annual bar membership dues and to complete his continuing legal education requirement involved a substantial likelihood that he would violate the Department’s bar membership policy.  In addition, OPR concluded that the attorney committed intentional professional misconduct during one of his lapses of active bar membership by practicing law when his active bar membership was suspended while knowing that he was ineligible to practice law, in violation of the rules of professional conduct, and by knowingly failing to inform his supervisors about two of his lapses of active bar membership, in violation of the rules of professional conduct and his unambiguous obligation under Department policy to inform his supervisors about lapses of active bar membership.  The matter is pending before the Professional Misconduct Review Unit.