Kevin M. Kallenbach will begin a three-month suspension later in May.

The state Supreme Court has ordered an Erie lawyer to serve a three-month suspension for violating the terms of his probation for a previous infraction.

The Supreme Court ordered Thursday that Kevin M. Kallenbach also serve an additional 21 months of probation, based on a report and recommendation from the Supreme Court's Disciplinary Board for lawyers. The court's decision exceeded the recommendation of a designated Disciplinary Board member, who suggested only that Kallenbach's probation be extended another two years.

"I would have preferred that the Supreme Court follow the hearing examiner's findings, and that was a disappointment that they did not," said Kallenbach, 58.

Kallenbach worked in the Erie County Public Defender's Office until December, and also works in private practice, according to disciplinary filings.

The Disciplinary Board member found that Kallenbach failed to meet regularly with Erie County Public Defender Pat Kennedy, who was his practice monitor during his probation, during two quarterly reporting periods. He also filed late motions in three cases, although the board member found that the tardiness of the filings did not hurt Kallenbach's clients.

Kallenbach had been ordered to meet with Kennedy monthly as a condition of his two years of probation, which he was ordered to serve in May 2015 for failing to file appeal paperwork on behalf of two criminal defendants.

Kennedy testified at a probation violation hearing in January that she had "general concerns as to (Kallenbach's) practice, which included, among other things, failing to return closed files to the office, late filings of motions in three cases, which left cases 'in limbo,' and failing to be proactive with his cases," according to the Disciplinary Board member's report.

Kennedy could not be reached for comment Tuesday.

Court documents and county records indicate Kallenbach resigned from his position in the public defender's office in December, but Kallenbach said he had been "discharged" from the office, where he had been a part-time employee for 25 years.

"The circumstances surrounding my departure from the public defender's office created the basis for the disciplinary action," he said.

The probation violation is the fifth infraction that has led to Kallenbach being reprimanded or disciplined for his conduct. Kallenbach received a private reprimand in 2006 for his handling of a 2003 divorce case, and a public reprimand in 2013 and one year of probation for misrepresenting to a divorce client that his divorce had been filed, according to court documents.

The infractions that led to the May 2015 term of probation were his third and fourth, according to the Supreme Court's order in that case. He was disciplined in that case for failing to file paperwork on behalf of two clients in their criminal appeals, which were then dismissed. The Disciplinary Board said Kallenbach also did not tell his clients their appeals had been dismissed.

Kallenbach said the suspension will begin May 27, and he will work to either conclude his current cases or hand them off to another attorney.

"I'm going to minimize the impact of my suspension on my clients to make sure that their cases are left in a really good posture," he said.

Erie lawyer Keith Clelland will take over as Kallenbach's practice monitor after his suspension, according to court filings.

Madeleine O'Neill can be reached at 870-1728 or by email. Follow her on Twitter at twitter.com/ETNoneill.