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Attorney Grievance Commission of Maryland v. Pennington6/22/2005
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"Furthermore, the Respondent's argument is further negated since the advice relied upon was from Mr. Wiggins, an attorney with no familiarity with the Maryland Rules of Professional Conduct and who is not admitted to practice law in Maryland.
"Finally, the Respondent contends that even if good faith reliance on the advice of counsel is not a complete defense, then it should stand as a mitigating factor. The factors recognized by Maryland Courts as mitigating circumstances in disciplinary matters are:
`absence of a prior disciplinary record; absence of a dishonest or selfish motive; personal or emotional problems; timely good faith efforts to make restitution or to rectify consequences of misconduct; full and free disclosure to disciplinary board or cooperative attitude toward proceedings; inexperience in the practice of law; character or reputation; physical or mental disability or impairment; delay in disciplinary proceedings; interim rehabilitation; imposition of other penalties or sanctions; remorse; and finally, remoteness of prior offenses.'
Attorney Grievance Commission v. Thompson, 367 Md. 315, 330, 786 A.2d 763, 772-73 (2001) (quoting Attorney Grievance Commission v. Jaseb, 364 Md. 464, 481-82, 773 A.2d 516, 526 (2001) (in turn quoting Attorney Grievance Commission v. Glenn, 341 Md. 448, 488-89,671 A.2d 463,483 (1996) (citations omitted)).
"It is the province of this Court to `make findings in regards to facts that it believes mitigate in respect to the conduct of a respondent in attorney discipline matters.' Attorney Grievance Commission v. Vanderlinde, 364 Md. 376, 384, 773 A.2d 463, 467 (2001). Moreover, this Court `is to bring what it believes to be mitigating circumstances, in respect to the conduct involved, to the attention of [The Court of Appeals], not to offer its views as to whether any such circumstance, or the lack of any such circumstances, justifies any lesser or greater sanction.' Vanderlinde, 364 Md. at 384, 773 A.2d at 467. In discharging this responsibility, this Court brings to the attention of the Court of Appeals its finding that the Respondent in good faith relied on the incorrect advice provided to her by Mr. Wiggins and, because of that reliance, did not impart to the Butlers information about the status of their claims or the source of the funds that they received. Furthermore, during the hearing, Respondent displayed a high degree of remorse for her actions. These actions should therefore be considered as mitigating factors when fashioning any sanction.
"This Court concludes that clear and convincing evidence was presented that the Respondent violated this Rule 8.4(c) and (d). Furthermore, the Respondent has failed to show by a preponderance of the evidence that good faith reliance on the advice of counsel is an affirmative defense to the claims of misconduct and conflict of interest. This Court does conclude that the good faith reliance on advice of counsel as a mitigating factor was sufficiently proven by the preponderance of the evidence.
V. Summary
"Respondent violated seven separate Rules of Professional Conduct. Each of these violations compounded a situation resulting from the Respondent's failure to notice an error made by the Clerk's Office for Circuit Court for Prince George's County. Nothing in this proceeding evidenced Respondent's lack of knowledge or understanding of the law, or her inability to represent clients competently.
"Respondent has practiced alone for a considerable period of time. While the Court of Appeals must determine whether and to what extent the Respondent is deserving of discipline, your Chancellor respectfully suggests that a suspen
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