The Indiana Supreme Court may find that the lawyer did not engage in misconduct. If the Court finds that there was misconduct, it orders a disciplinary sanction. The sanction depends on the seriousness of the case. Sanctions include: Suspension from practice with reinstatement only after the lawyer proves fitness; and. Permanent disbarment.
If that doesn't work, you may file a grievance with the Indiana Supreme Court Disciplinary Commission. To file a grievance, you must complete and submit a Request for Investigation form. This form is found below or you can request a form be mailed to you by contacting the Disciplinary Commission office at (317) 232-1807.
Apr 20, 2022 · If a respondent files a timely response to the Motion for Judgment on the Complaint, the hearing officer shall set the motion and the respondent's response for hearing within twenty-eight (28) days, and shall give the Disciplinary Commission and the respondent at least seven (7) days' notice of that hearing.
Apr 22, 2022 · Coming to an agreement with the Indiana Supreme Court Disciplinary Commission, a northern Indiana attorney with a lengthy disciplinary history has been suspended for at least one year from the practice of law for his 2019 arrest for possession of a legend drug. ... supervising attorneys can face discipline. Read More. Justices suspend lawyers ...
The respondent shall then have fifteen (15) days from the date of service of the Disciplinary Commission's brief to file a reply brief.
(e)Objection to Petition for Disability Suspension. The attorney shall have thirty (30) days after the filing of the Disciplinary Commission's Petition for Disability Suspension to file an objection.
The Disciplinary Commission shall annually elect from among its membership a Chair who shall preside at all meetings, a Vice Chair who shall preside in the absence of the Chair, and a Secretary who shall keep the minutes of the meetings of the Disciplinary Commission. (b)Quorum.
If a respondent files a timely response to the Motion for Judgment on the Complaint, the hearing officer shall set the motion and the respondent's response for hearing within twenty-eight (28) days, and shall give the Disciplinary Commission and the respondent at least seven (7) days' notice of that hearing.
An attorney or the Disciplinary Commission may, on a showing of good cause, petition the Supreme Court for a change of hearing officer within ten (10) days after the appointment of the hearing officer. (iii)Powers and duties. Hearing officers shall have the powers provided in Section 13.
If an objection is filed, probation shall continue until further order of the Supreme Court. The attorney shall have fifteen (15) days after service of an objection to file a response. The Disciplinary Commission shall have ten (10) days after service of a response to file a reply.
An Indianapolis attorney and real estate broker whose overdrafts of his attorney trust accounts triggered a disciplinary commission investigation received a suspended suspension Thursday subject to at least one year of probation with accountant monitoring.
A former Hamilton County magistrate who was banned from the bench and put on disciplinary probation after being convicted in a drug sting has been suspended from the practice of law in Indiana for 180 days without automatic reinstatement.
A Merrillville attorney who was facing a disciplinary action for allegedly engaging in a scheme to falsify a notice that the court’s electronic filing system had malfunctioned to cover up his failure to timely submit a filing has resigned from the Indiana bar.
A northern Indiana lawyer who two years ago was suspended and jailed for forging a judge’s signature on a phony divorce order and attempting to coopt a deputy prosecutor’s identity has resigned from the practice of law rather than face a subsequent attorney discipline complaint.
A Logansport lawyer who was convicted for a second time of beating his wife will have his law license suspended for 90 days with automatic reinstatement, the Indiana Supreme Court has ruled.
A former Hamilton County magistrate who was banned from the bench and put on disciplinary probation after being convicted in a drug sting has been suspended from the practice of law in Indiana for 180 days without automatic reinstatement.
Judicial disciplinary cases, most typically, are initiated by the receipt of a written, verified complaint. Commission staff screens written complaints. Complaints raising only issues for appeal, legal error, and complaints that are unfounded or frivolous are dismissed summarily by the Commission.
Complaints which are not unfounded or frivolous, as well as those brought by the Commission, proceed to an inquiry. Usually, the judge is asked to respond to the allegations of the complaint. Other confidential inquiries may be made by the staff or by the Commission members.
If the inquiry indicates that misconduct occurred which, at least at this stage, cannot be resolved informally, the Commission may vote to proceed to investigation. At this time, the Commission must provide the judge with notice of investigation, with the complaint, and with the specific allegations.
If the Supreme Court concludes that the judge committed ethical misconduct, it determines the appropriate sanction. The Court is not bound by the Masters' report, but gives it deference. The Court may issue a Private Reprimand, a Public Reprimand or greater sanctions, from a suspension from office without pay to removal from office.
The Executive Secretary of the Commission is Donald R. Lundberg.
After a grievance has been investigated, the Executive Secretary reports on it to the Disciplinary Commission, together with his recommendation about the disposition of the matter. The Commission makes a determination whether or not there is reasonable cause to believe the lawyer is guilty of misconduct that would warrant disciplinary action. If the Commission finds that there is not reasonable cause, the matter is dismissed with written notice to the grievant and the lawyer. If the Commission finds that reasonable cause exists, it directs the Executive Secretary to prepare and file with the Clerk of the Supreme Court a verified complaint charging the lawyer with misconduct.
Ind.Const. art. 7, § 4. On June 23, 1971, the Indiana Supreme Court created the Disciplinary Commission to function in an investigatory and prosecutorial capacity in lawyer discipline matters.
The hearing officer must be an attorney admitted to practice law in the State of Indiana and is frequently a sitting or retired judge. Typically, the hearing officer is from a county close to the county in which the respondent lawyer practices law. The hearing officer's responsibilities include supervising the pre-hearing development of the case including discovery, conducting an evidentiary hearing, and reporting the results of the hearing to the Supreme Court by way of written findings of fact, conclusions of law and recommendations. A hearing may be held at any location determined to be appropriate by the hearing officer.
After the hearing officer has issued a report to the Supreme Court, either or both of the parties may petition the Court for a review of any or all of the hearing officer's findings, conclusions and recommendations. In every case, even in the absence of a petition for review by one of the parties, the Court independently reviews the matter and issues its final order in the case.
The conclusion of a lawyer discipline proceeding is an order from the Supreme Court setting out the facts of the case, determining the violations (if any) of the Rules of Professional Conduct that are supported by the facts, and assessing a sanction in each case where it finds misconduct. The sanction ordered by the Court is related to the seriousness of the violation and the presence or absence of mitigating or aggravating circumstances. The available disciplinary sanctions include:
Temporary suspensions are generally reserved for cases of serious misconduct or on-going risk to clients or the integrity of client funds. The hearing officer is responsible for taking evidence on a petition for temporary suspension and making a recommendation to the Supreme Court. The Court then issues an order granting or denying the petition for temporary suspension.