Our Name Is New, But Our 任务 Is Not

From 华盛顿澳门赌场官网, February 2016
作者:吉恩·希普

2015年12月19日，澳门赌场官网办公室更名为纪律澳门赌场官网办公室. We had been 酒吧 Counsel since 1973. 我们从未担任过司法部的澳门赌场官网或法律总顾问.C. 酒吧 nor have we ever represented the 酒吧, 但偶尔会有澳门赌场官网和公众认为这是我们的职责.[1]

自从我们成立以来，这个办公室一直是检察院的检察部门.C. Court of Appeals' disciplinary system. What is our connection to the 酒吧? We were established by the D.C. Court of Appeals when it created 纪律制度 for the regulation of attorney conduct under Rule XI of the D.C. 上诉法院规则 Governing the 酒吧.[2] 同一组规则(从规则1到规则9)用于创建栏. Our nexus with the 酒吧 is that the 酒吧's 董事会 of Governors nominates attorneys for each vacancy on the 董事会 on Professional Responsibility (BPR), the 董事会 approves our budget, 和 the 酒吧 pays our bills.[3]

With that history (not being counsel for the 酒吧 和 being an independent disciplinary prosecutor), why should we be called 酒吧 Counsel? On request of the 董事会 of Governors 和 BPR, the Court of Appeals renamed us to reflect what we actually are—the Office of Disciplinary Counsel. 现在，这确实有一个稍微苛刻的内涵和削减42年的传统. 毕竟, 我们是全国澳门赌场官网协会的成员, which came into existence after Watergate. 这是澳门赌场官网纪律专业化的时期. A few bar counsel offices do represent their bars as general counsel as well as h和le discipline. 然而, 大多数纪律检察官已经摆脱了这种关系, 变得独立了, 并被重新命名为纪律顾问或监管顾问.[4]

如果你读到这里，你可能会说，“谁在乎”或者“这和我有什么关系”?“嗯，我们真的是最不自律的职业. It is clear to me that self-regulation is ours to lose. If we do not do this well, other players will move in to assume this very important responsibility.

The Office of Disciplinary Counsel exists to protect the public from unethical or inappropriate behavior by attorneys who violate the D.C. 规则 of Professional Conduct. We take that responsibility very seriously. 今天, this office investigates 和 prosecutes cases that we could not have undertaken when I joined the office years ago. We now have the resources 和 wherewithal to h和le complex cases such as international matters 和 conflicts that were ignored for a very long time. 例如, we have h和led immigration matters where Court of Appeals decisions resulted in the reopening of immigrant cases 和 the granting of status that stopped deportation.

Self-regulation 和 protecting the public require the cooperation of attorneys who find themselves to be respondents. 对我们的询问作出真实和坦率的回答是为了服务公众, 纪律制度, 和, 最终, 涉案澳门赌场官网. While we are now named Disciplinary Counsel, 我们仍然有资源和意愿来帮助澳门赌场官网改进他们的业务. 成功的调查往往以投诉人理解解决方案而告终, 也许有一笔费用返还，或者澳门赌场官网以成功的方式完成了这件事, 澳门赌场官网懂得如何在未来避免此类投诉.

没人想要新任命的纪律检察官办公室的信. 还记得, a law license is a privilege 和 comes with the obligations imposed by the 规则 of Professional Conduct 和 Rule XI. We all need to take our ethical responsibilities seriously if we are to remain a self-regulating profession. 尽管我们有了新名字，办公室还是澳门赌场官网我们减少纪律的那一天. Please help us in that endeavor.

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笔记

[1]一次, in 1982, I was "attorney of the day" when a member of the public called to enroll in a class to learn how to make various cocktails.
[2] You can find this body of rules appended to the D.C. 上诉法院规则.
[3] The 董事会 on Professional Responsibility is our governing body 和 serves as the second-tier adjudicator in discipline matters.
[4] D.C. 酒吧's Office of 监管法律顾问 provides confidential help to attorneys in areas such as ethics, 实践管理, 上瘾, 心理健康问题, 以及费用仲裁. 该办公室不是纪律检察官办公室的一部分.

委员会就专业责任采取的纪律行动

原来的问题

我是埃莉诺·奈斯. 酒吧没有. 287391. 2015年11月12日. 专业责任委员会建议D.C. Court of Appeals disbar Nace. 除了, as a condition of reinstatement, the 董事会 recommends that Nace be required to make restitution to the Clients' Security Trust Fund in the amount of $2,050 (less any amounts repaid), with interest at the legal rate. 同时受聘代表客户处理与客户早前离婚有关的事宜, Nace failed to provide competent representation, failed to serve the client with skill 和 care, failed to represent the client zealously 和 diligently, 故意未能寻求客户的合法目标, failed to act with reasonable promptness, failed to keep the client reasonably informed, failed to hold an advance fee in a trust or escrow account until earned 和 recklessly misappropriated entrusted funds, 代理终止后未交出文件和财产的, failed to respond to a disciplinary authority, 并参与了严重干扰司法的行为. 规则1.1(a), 1.1(b), 1.3(a), 1.3(b)(1), 1.3(c), 1.4(a), 1.15(a), 1.15(e), 1.16(d), 8.1(b)和8.4(d).

我是丹尼尔。. 维姆霍夫. 酒吧没有. 420233. 2015年11月20日. 专业责任委员会建议D.C. 上诉法院暂停温霍夫30天，并要求暂停, 和 that Wemhoff be placed on probation for one year, 条件是他须接受环保署助理署长的评估.C. 酒吧 Practice Management Advisory Service (PMAS), or a designee; implement any recommendations that the PMAS may make; 和 sign a limited waiver permitting the PMAS to confirm his compliance with this condition, 和 his cooperation in the assessment process. 纪律处分程序源于温霍夫在民事诉讼中的代理. 具体地说, Wemhoff disclosed his client's confidences 和 secrets without authorization or other justification, 故意不遵守法庭规则规定的义务, 并参与了严重干扰司法的行为. 规则1.6(a), 3.4(c)和8.4(d).

哥伦比亚特区上诉法院采取的纪律处分

原来的问题

在re Andre ?. 理发师. 酒吧没有. 466138. 2015年11月12日. D.C. Court of Appeals disbarred 酒吧ber. 这件事的起因是巴伯卷入了一系列房东与房客之间的纠纷, 其中一个他是房客，另一个他是房客的澳门赌场官网. 酒吧ber pursued frivolous pro se litigation with his own l和lord 和 engaged in wide-ranging misconduct while representing three tenants, two of whom he eventually sued for fees, in their dispute with another l和lord. 巴伯采取了无聊而繁重的诉讼策略, pursued meritless claims for attorney's fees, 违反法院命令, failed to cooperate with 酒吧 Counsel's investigation, 并在司法和纪律程序中作出虚假陈述. 规则1.3(b)(2), 1.4(a), 1.7(b)(4), 3.1, 3.2(a), 3.2(b), 3.3(a), 4.4, 7.1(a), 7.5(a), 7.5(d), 8.1(a), 8.4(c), 8.4(d)，和8.4(g)和D.C. 酒吧R. XI，§2(b)(3).

IN RE ATHANASIOS BASDEKIS. 酒吧没有. 463692. 2015年11月12日. D.C. Court of Appeals accepted Basdekis's petition for negotiated discipline 和 suspended him for four months, execution suspended in favor of an 18-month period of unsupervised probation subject to conditions. 这些违规行为源于巴斯德基斯在2002年至2006年期间对六名客户的忽视. 规则1.1(a), 1.1(b), 1.3(a), 1.3(b)(1), 1.4(a)和3.2(b).

IN RE SANDY THOMAS-BELLAMY. 酒吧没有. 1011060. 2015年11月12日. D.C. Court of Appeals accepted Thomas-Bellamy's petition for negotiated discipline 和 suspended her for one year with fitness. Thomas-Bellamy violated four 规则 in connection with her application for admission to the District of Columbia 酒吧. 规则8.1(a), 8.1(b), 8.4(c)和8.4(d).

互惠的事情

In re melodie v .旋律. 舒勒. 酒吧没有. 488686. 2015年11月5日. In a reciprocal matter from Maryl和, the D.C. Court of Appeals imposed identical reciprocal discipline 和 suspended Shuler for 30 days with reinstatement conditioned on her showing that her disability has ended pursuant to D.C. 酒吧R. 十一，第13(g)条. 在马里兰州，舒勒被发现基本上放弃了她对客户的代理.

在我的脑海里. 史密斯. 酒吧没有. 392331. 2015年11月5日. In a reciprocal matter from Maryl和, the D.C. 上诉法院对史密斯进行了同样的惩戒并取消了他的澳门赌场官网资格. 在马里兰州, 史密斯被发现没有遵守记录保存要求, 允许一个非澳门赌场官网助理故意挪用超过600美元,000 of entrusted funds belonging to Smith's clients.

詹姆斯·c. 小踏上归途. 酒吧没有. 297762. 2015年11月5日. In a reciprocal matter from Colorado, the D.C. Court of Appeals revoked Underhill's previously imposed probation 和 suspended him for three months 和 one day, 要求他在复职前证明自己适合从事法律工作. 在科罗拉多州, Underhill was found to have violated his probation by repeatedly communicating directly with a represented party about the subject of the litigation.

大澳门赌场官网办公室发出的非正式训诫

在这里. 罗伯特·布莱. 酒吧没有. 424844. 2015年10月30日. 酒吧 Counsel issued Blakey an informal admonition. While retained to represent a client, who was in-house counsel, in her effort to provide evidence that her former corporate employer was engaged in alleged illegal activities, 布雷基在知情的情况下协助该客户泄露机密, 或利用机密或秘密对前客户不利. 规则8.4(a).

约翰?. 戴维斯. 酒吧没有. 931600. 2015年10月21日. 酒吧 Counsel issued Davis an informal admonition. 同时代表客户处理三个独立案件, Davis violated multiple 规则 of Professional Conduct. 具体地说, 在代表一位客户努力解决她不利的就业状况时, Davis failed to explain the matter to the extent reasonably necessary to permit the client to make informed decisions regarding the representation 和 failed to put the basis or rate of the fee in writing. 规则1.4(b)和1.5(b). 在哥伦比亚特区高等法院民事案件中代表客户, Davis failed to provide competent representation, failed to represent the client with diligence 和 zeal, 并参与了严重干扰司法的行为. 规则1.1(a), 1.1(b), 1.3(a), 1.3(c)和8.4(d). While representing a client in multiple matters against his employer intermittently from 2009 through early 2015, Davis failed to represent the client with diligence 和 zeal 和 failed to explain the matter to the extent reasonably necessary to permit the client to make informed decisions regarding the representation. 规则1.3(a), 1.3(c)和1.4(b).

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纪律顾问办公室编制了上述纪律行动摘要. 非正式的警告 issued by Disciplinary Counsel 和 报告 和 Recommendations issued by the 董事会 on Professional Responsibility are posted at www.dcattorneydiscipline.org. 在法庭审议之前，董事会关于纪律的大多数建议都不是最终的. Court opinions are printed in the Atlantic Reporter 和 also are available online for decisions issued since August 1998. To obtain a copy of a recent slip opinion, visit www.dccourts.gov/internet/opinionlocator.jsf.