Tuesday, January 31, 2017

A 54-year career at the bar without discipline did not save an 80 year-old attorney from the ultimate sanction of disbarment by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court.

The attorney had engaged in "egregious" misconduct in three matters and failed to acknowledge any ethical violations.

The Disciplinary Board noted that Pennsylvania does not impose per se discipline for misconduct, although misappropriation of entrusted funds is dealt with harshly. Here, the board found that any one of the three matters warranted a severe sanction but together overcame the mitigation factor of a lengthy discipline-free practice.

He also had serious ongoing tax problems and made a false statement in bar registration.

Notably, the charges were filed in May 2015 and the process from charge to final disposition took about eight months.

Bravo.

The case is In re Raymond Quaglia and can be accessed at this link. (Mike Frisch)

https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/legal_profession/2017/01/54-year-discipline-free-career-ends-in-disbarment.html