Opinion ID: 1525615
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Service of the Specification of Charges and Petition

Text: Prior to the hearing, Respondent raised the issue of whether he had been properly served with the Specification of Charges and Petition Instituting Formal Disciplinary Proceedings. Respondent argues that formal disciplinary proceedings are instituted by the filing of a Petition which must be served upon the Respondent (D.C. Bar R. XI, § 8(c)), and that service must be either personal or by registered or certified mail. D.C. Bar R. XI, § 19(e). In support of his motion, Respondent has cited numerous federal decisions finding various federal tribunals lacked jurisdiction over an individual who had not been properly served, and that proof of actual notice of the proceedings neither cured deficient service nor conferred jurisdiction. In those cases, the act of service, in strict compliance with the applicable service rule, was part and parcel of the tribunal acquiring jurisdiction over the individual. As stated in the Committee Report, an attorney before the disciplinary authorities of a Bar to which the attorney belongs stands on a different footing than a defendant being brought before a federal tribunal as in the cases cited by Respondent. Bar Counsel notes that pursuant to rules duly promulgated by the District of Columbia Court of Appeals, [a]ll members of the District of Columbia Bar . . . are subject to the disciplinary jurisdiction of [that] Court and its Board on Professional Responsibility. . . . D.C. Bar R. XI, § 1(a). In essence, it is the Rule rather than service that provides for jurisdiction of the Board and its Hearing Committee over a D.C. licensed attorney. Accordingly, and in light of Respondent's actual notice, the Board concludes that Respondent's motion to dismiss for lack of service should be denied.