Argued o n: J anu ar y 13, 201 4

F ebr uar y 11, 201 4 

### IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF MARYLAND Misc. Docket AG No. 55 Septem ber Term , 2012

I N T HE MAT T ER OF T HE PET I T I ON FOR REI NST AT EME NT OF LOUI S PET ER T ANKO, J R. T O T HE BAR OF M ARYLAND 

### Barbera, C.J. Harrell Battaglia Greene Adkins McDonald W atts, JJ.
PER CURIAM ORDER Battaglia, J., dissents. Filed: February

12, 2014I

N THE MATT ER OF TH E PETI TI ON * I n the FOR REI NSTATEMENT OF L OUI S PETER TANKO, J R. * Court of Appea ls TO THE B AR OF MARYLAND * Of Mar yland
* Misc. Docke t AG
* No. 55
* September Te rm, 2012
PER C URI AM ORDER
This matter ca

me bef ore this Court most rece ntly on a Petition for Reinstatement filed by L ouis Peter Tanko, Jr. and the re sponse of B ar Counsel. The Court denied the Petition for Reinstatement on Dec ember 14, 2012. Petitioner filed there afte r an A mendment by I nterlineation to the Petit ion for Reinstatement and Motion to Strike and Opposition to Bar Counsel’s Response and f or Reconsider ation of Orde r De ny ing Re instatement and Reque st for He aring . Ba r Counsel filed a response . The Court g rante d the motion for re consideration and then denied the motion to s trike, the re quest for he aringand re quest for r einstatement on May 16, 2013. Petitioner filed a se cond Motion for Rec onsideration and Re quest for H ear ing on or about J une 18, 2013. B ar Counsel re sponded see king de nial of the motion. The Court g rante d the Motion for Reconsider ation and Reque st for He aring . Ora l arguments were hear d befor e this Court during the J anuar

y and F ebrua

ry 2014 Sessions. I n consideration of the pape rs and argument, it is t his 12th day of F ebrua

ry , 2014 ORDERED, by

the Court of Appe als of Mar yland, a major ity

of the Court conc urring , that L ouis Peter Tanko, Jr. be, and he is hereby , reinstated to the pr actice of law in this State,subject to pay ment by Petitioner of $2,500 to Mrs. Sharon Gosne ll, mother of his former client, Howar d G. B rown, a s disgor g ement of the unear ned portion of the $5,000 f ee pa id by

Mrs. Gosnell, on beha lf of her

son, Mr. Br own; and it is further ORDERED, that the Clerk of this Court, upon t he condition havingbeen me t and
cer tified by Ba r Counsel that fac t in writing to the Court, shall re place the name of L ouis Peter Tanko, Jr. upon the reg ister of attorney s entitled to practice law in this St ate a nd cer tify that fac t to the Trustee s of the Clients Protection Fund a nd to the Clerks of all judicial tribunals in this State.

/s/ Mary Ellen Ba rber a Chief J udg eArgued o n: J anu ar y 13, 201 4

F ebr uar y 11, 201 4 

### IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF MARYLAND Misc. Docket AG No. 55 Septem ber Term , 2012
I N THE MATT ER OF TH E PETI TI ON FOR REI NSTATEMENT OF L OUI S PETER TANKO, J R. TO THE B AR OF MARYLAND 

### Barbera, C.J. Harrell Battaglia Greene Adkins McDonald W atts, JJ. Dissenting Opinion by

Battaglia, J. Filed: February

12, 2014

### I respectf ully dissent f

rom the order in this case, because I would not reinstate Louis P e ter Tanko, Jr. until he disgorged the entire $5,000 paid by Mrs. Sharon Gosnel l
. M r . Tanko did not get the inf

orm ed consent of

Mrs. Gosnell f

or him to imm ediately

access the $5,000 retainer, which he deposited into his op e rating account, rather than in his trust account, in violation of Mary land Rules of Prof essional Conduct 1.15(a) and (c). Attorney Grievance v. Tanko , 427 Md. 15, 45 A.3d 281 (2012). In my view, regardless of the am ount of work Mr. Tanko alleg e d t h a t h e perf orm ed, his unf

ettered access to the m oney requires disgorgem ent of

the entire $5,000 f

ee paid by

Mrs. Gosnell.