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Iowa Supreme Court of Attorney Disciplinary Board v. Maxwell10/21/2005
On review of the report of the Grievance Commission.
Grievance Commission reports that respondent has committed ethical misconduct and recommends a suspension. LICENSE SUSPENDED.
The Iowa Supreme Court Attorney Disciplinary Board charged Michael D. Maxwell with numerous violations of the Iowa Code of Professional Responsibility for Lawyers stemming from his neglect and inattention in the representation of three clients. The Grievance Commission of the Supreme Court of Iowa found Maxwell violated the Code of Professional Responsibility. It recommended Maxwell be suspended from the practice of law for an indefinite period of time, subject to reinstatement under the provisions governing the suspension of a lawyer for a disability. On our review, we find Maxwell violated the Code of Professional Responsibility and impose an indefinite suspension of not less than one year.
I. Background Facts and Proceedings
Michael D. Maxwell was admitted to practice law in Iowa in 1988. He practiced law for a brief period of time in Texas prior to that time, and worked in private business for several years before attending law school. Maxwell is fifty-five years old. He is married and has two children. His wife is also an Iowa lawyer. Maxwell has been a sole practitioner in Des Moines since 1991, and has developed a general practice. He is licensed to practice before the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
Maxwell has suffered from depression for much of his adult life. He has also had a long struggle with anxiety. Maxwell began medical treatment for his depression while in college. It has continued, off and on, since that time. For the most part, he is treated with medication and psychotherapy. Recent medical treatment has revealed an additional diagnosis of attention deficit disorder. His chronic depression is affected by a number of ongoing stress factors, and the treatment he has received has only been met with limited overall success. Periods of success have never been sustained. Some of the stress in his life emanates from the practice of law, producing a tendency for him to procrastinate, lose concentration, and become generally disorganized.
The symptoms of depression suffered by Maxwell have generated a multitude of problems for him in his personal and business life. Three problems are at the center of this disciplinary action. In May 1999, he began representing a woman named Theresa Daniels in a personal injury claim. He failed to file a lawsuit on behalf of Daniels prior to the time the statute of limitations ran in 2001. In June 1999, he began representing a woman named Kendra Wiess in a personal injury claim. Again he failed to file a lawsuit on behalf of Wiess prior to the time the statute of limitations ran in 2001. In 2002, he began representing a woman named Arminda Monaghan in an action to modify the child custody, visitation, and support terms of a decree for dissolution of marriage. During the pendency of this action, Maxwell failed to notify Monaghan of a court hearing, and she was denied an opportunity to present testimony prior to a court ruling in the case.
Maxwell has a history of prior disciplinary actions. He was reprimanded in 1993 for placing his personal interests before the interests of a client. He was reprimanded in 1999 for neglect of a client's legal matter. He was admonished in 2000 for failing to communicate with a client. He was reprimanded in 2004 for neglect and misconduct.
Maxwell acknowledged the facts of the complaints against him. His testimony at the disciplinary hearing centered on his chronic depression as an underlying cause of his conduct, and his lifelong efforts in dealin
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