Case Title: In re Petition for Disciplinary Action against Jennie Catherine M. Brown, a Minnesota Attorney, Registration No. 166637.

Citation: 

Docket Number: A11-1019

State: minnesota

Court: Minnesota Supreme Court

Date: 2011-11-23T00:00:00Z

Document:
STATE OF MINNESOTA

  

IN SUPREME COURT
aprcLiate COU
An-1019 iE COURTS
NOV16 zat
In re Petition for Disciplinary Action against FILED

Jennie Catherine M. Brown, a Minnesota
Attorney, Registration No. 166637.

ORDER

The Director of the Office of Lawyers Professional Responsibitity has filed a
petition for disciplinary action alleging that respondent Jennie Catherine M. Brown
committed professional misconduct warranting public discipline, namely, neglect of six
client matters resulting in dismissal of those matters, failure to pay court-ordered
sanctions for bringing a meritless claim, failure to maintain required practice-related and
‘rust account books and records, and failure to cooperate with the Director's investigation
‘of an overdraft in her trust account, in violation of Minn. R. Prof. Conduct 1.3, 14(@X(1),
3), and (4), 1.15(6\3) and (h), 3.1, 3.2, 3.4), 8.1(6), 8.4(4), Appendix 1 to the Rules of
Professional Conduct, and Rule 25, Rules on Lawyers Professional Responsibility
(RLPR),

Respondent waived het procedural rights under Rule 14, RLPR, and
unconditionally admitted the allegations of the petition. In addition, the parties each

provided the court with additional information about the particular client matters that
formed the basis of the disci

 

inary petition, ‘The parties jointly recommend that the
appropriate discipline is a public reprimand and two years of supervised probation

‘The court has independently reviewed the file and approves the recommended

 

disposition.

Based upon all the files, records, and proceedings herein,

IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that respondent Jennie Catherine M. Brown is
publicly reprimanded and placed on supervised probation for a period of two years from
the date of filing of this order, subject to the following terms and conditions:

(2) Respondent shall abide by the Rules of Professional Conduct.

(©) Respondent shall cooperate fully with the efforts of the Director’s
Office to monitor compliance with this probation. Respondent shall
promptly respond to the Director’s correspondence by the due date
Respondent shall provide the Director with a current mailing address and
shall immediately notify the Director of any change of address.
Respondent shall cooperate with the Director's investigation of any
allegations of unprofessional conduct that may come to the Director's
attention. At the Director's request, respondent shall authorize the release
of information and documentation to verify compliance with the terms of
this probation.

 

(©) _ Respondent shall be supervised by a licensed Minnesota attomey
appointed by the Director to monitor compliance with the terms of this
probation. Within two weeks of the date of filing of this order, respondent
shall provide the Director with the names of four attomeys who have
agreed to be nominated as respondent's supervisor. If, after diligent effort,
respondent is unable to locate a supervisor acceptable to the Director, the
Director will seek to appoint a supervisor. Until a supervisor has signed a
consent to supervise, respondent shall on the first day of each month
provide the Director with an inventory of active client files, as described in
paragraph (4). Respondent shall make active client files available to the
Director upon request.

 

(@) Respondent shall cooperate fully with the supervisor's efforts to
monitor compliance with this probation. Respondent shall contact the

2
supervisor and schedule a minimum of one in-person meeting per calendar
quarter. By the first day of each month during probation, respondent shall
provide the supervisor with an inventory of all active client files. With
respect to each active client file, the inventory shall disclose the client
fame, type of representation, date opened, most recent activity, next
‘anticipated action, and anticipated closing date. Respondent's supervisor
shall file written reports with the Director at least quarterly, or at such more
frequent intervals as the Director may reasonably request

 

(©) Respondent shall initiate and maintain office procedures that ensure
that there are prompt responses to correspondence, telephone calls, and
other important communications from clients, courts, and other persons
interested in matters that respondent is handling, and that will ensure that
respondent reviews each and every file regularly, and completes legal
matters on a timely basis

(Within 30 days from the date of filing ofthis order, respondent shall
provide the Director and the probation supervisor, if one has been
appointed, with a written plan outlining office procedures designed to
ensure that respondent is in compliance with probation requirements,
Respondent shall provide progress reports as requested.

 

(@) Respondent shall maintain law office and trust account books and
records in compliance with Minn, R. Prof. Conduct 1.15 and Appendix 1.
These books and records include the following: client subsidiary ledger,
checkbook register, monthly trial balances, monthly trust account
reconciliations, bank statements, canceled checks, duplicate deposit slips,
and bank reports of interest, service charges, and interest payments to the
Minnesota IOLTA Program. Such books and records shall be made
available to the Director within 30 days from the date of filing of this order,
and thereafler made available to the Director at such intervals as he
reasonably deems necessary to determine compliance.

 

Respondent shall pay $900 in costs pursuant to Rule 24, RLPR.
Dated: November 16, 2011

BY THE COURT:

fully
Aon age 7

Associate Justice