| Case Digest |
In 1997 Petitioner filed his second petition for reinstatement FROM a three-year suspension imposed in 1990 as a result of his HAVING commingled client funds, failing to release entrusted funds to a medical provider, and failing to respond to inquiries FROM the medical provider. Petitioner filed his initial petition for reinstatement in 1993 and withdrew it in 1995.
The Disciplinary Board recommended denial of the petition on the basis that Petitioner did not present sufficient evidence of his moral qualifications. Petitioner presented only one character witness, his employer, who testified that he had made it a policy not to get involved in affairs of his employees. Hence, the Board had no basis upon which to evaluate what Petitioner had been doing in the previous nine years to rehabilitate himself. The Board said that the lack of character evidence was fatal to Petitioner’s case because the record indicated Petitioner’s lack of organization and his inability to get his personal life in order.
Respondent presented evidence of Petitioner’s alleged mishandling of a legal matter around the time of his suspension, a civil jury verdict finding that Petitioner or someone acting on his behalf had intentionally set fire to his home, adverse newspaper publicity pertaining to the fire, inaccurate responses in his initial and second petitions, an outstanding IRS obligation, and a discharge in bankruptcy. The Board declined to assign any weight to these factors because the Board found that they were either too remote in time or immaterial to the issues before the Board. |
