Vol. 34, No. 5, 14. Bar Counsel Report.

• Author: by Mark W. Gifford Bar Counsel Wyoming State Bar

Wyoming Bar Journal

2011.

Vol. 34, No. 5, 14.

Bar Counsel Report

Wyoming LawyerIssue: October, 2011Bar Counsel Reportby Mark W. Gifford Bar Counsel Wyoming State BarSummarizing Lawyer Discipline

Visitors to the Wyoming State Bar website will find a new addition - a downloadable PDF document summarizing disciplinary action taken by the Board of Professional Responsibility and the Wyoming Supreme Court. This summary was compiled in response to requests from practitioners, and should serve as a handy reference source for lawyers interested in learning how specific infractions of the Rules of Professional Conduct have been dealt with.

The summary reports disciplinary cases since 2002, the period for which such information is readily accessible, along with a few earlier cases that were reported in Pacific Reporter. It is presented on a rule-by rule basis and contains information on all forms of discipline - disbarments, suspensions, public censures and private reprimands - but does not report cases resolved pursuant to diversion contracts (which do not constitute disciplinary action). Where a given case involved multiple violations, the same case is reported under each rule that was violated. The summary does not reflect whether the discipline followed a contested hearing or was rendered by stipulation; most cases are resolved by stipulation between Bar Counsel and the respondent attorney, subject to the approval of the Board of Professional Responsibility and, for cases of public discipline, the Wyoming Supreme Court.

Some may wonder whether or how the disciplinary summary is likely to come into play in resolving future disciplinary cases. The answer to that question requires an understanding of how discipline is meted out under the Disciplinary Code. When my investigation of a potential rules infraction reveals information tending to establish by clear and convincing evidence a violation of the Rules of Professional Conduct, I will typically propose stipulated discipline to the lawyer before obtaining the approval of the Peer Review Panel to bring a formal charge. My proposal is guided by the ABA Standards for Imposing Lawyer Discipline, a comprehensive treatment of the factors favoring a particular form of discipline for a given rules violation, including aggravating and mitigating factors. This is the...