Attorney Discipline
| Jurisdiction | Georgia,United States |
| Citation | Vol. 25 No. 6 Pg. 0056 |
| Pages | 0056 |
| Publication year | 2020 |
Attorney Discipline Summaries
BY JESSICA OGLESBY
March 7, 2020 - April 6, 2020
Disbarments
Marc Celello
2870 Peachtree Road, Unit 140 Atlanta, GA 30305
On March 13, 2020, the Supreme Court of Georgia accepted the petition for voluntary surrender of license for attorney Marc Celello (State Bar No. 950497) following his entry of a guilty plea in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia to conspiracy to commit securities fraud in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 371. Celello admitted that by this conviction he violated Rule 8.4 (a) (2) of the Georgia Rules of Professional Conduct. The maximum penalty for a violation of Rule 8.4 (a) (2) is disbarment.
Marta Maria Noriega-Allen
48 SHS CN 286 Augusta, ME 04333
On March 26, 2020, the Supreme Court of Georgia disbarred attorney Marta Maria Noriega-Allen (State Bar No. 356678) from the practice of law in Georgia. A client hired Noriega-Allen to represent him in a divorce and paid $29,922.50 in retainer funds. Noriega-Allen initially provided monthly invoices showing she had earned $12,866 as of September 2014. After the divorce settled in September 2015, the parties agreed to have the trial court decide the issue of attorney fees; however, Noriega-Allen failed to file a motion for fees on her client's behalf, failed to respond to the motion for fees filed by her client's ex-wife, failed to appear at the hearing on the issue of fees, failed to respond to her client's requests for information regarding the balance owed from the remaining retainer funds, failed to account for the unearned balance and moved to Maine without providing contact information. Noriega-Allen failed to respond to the grievance or the Notice of Investigation, and the State Disciplinary Board found probable cause that she violated Rules 1.2 (a), 1.3, 1.4, 1.5, 1.15 (I), 1.15 (II), 1.16 (d) and 3.2 of the Georgia Rules of Professional Conduct. The maximum sanction for a violation of Rules 1.2 (a), 1.3, 1.15 (I) and 1.15 (II) is disbarment, and the maximum sanction for a violation of Rules 1.4, 1.5, 1.16 (d) and 3.2 is a public reprimand. In aggravation the Board found the following factors: dishonest or selfish motive, multiple offenses, substantial experience in the practice of law and indifference to making restitution. In mitigation the Board noted Noriega-Allen's absence of a prior disciplinary record.
Andrew David...
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