Opinion ID: 1909158
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Conditions of Reinstatement Cooperation, Restitution and Proof of Fitness

Text: When we suspend a respondent for failure to cooperate with a disciplinary investigation, we normally condition reinstatement on a demonstration by the respondent of full compliance with Bar Counsel's requests for information regarding the underlying disciplinary complaints. We grant the unopposed request for that condition here.
As another condition of reinstatement, Bar Counsel asks us to require respondent to show that she has made restitution to the Morton and Hinton Estates, or to any surety that has reimbursed those estates on her behalf. D.C. Bar Rule XI, § 3(b), provides that we may require an attorney to make restitution either to persons financially injured by the attorney's conduct or to the Clients' Security Trust Fund (see Rule XII), or both, as a condition of probation or of reinstatement. For purposes of § 3(b), the term restitution means a payment by the respondent attorney reimbursing a former client [or, where appropriate, the Clients' Security Trust Fund] for the money, interest, or thing of value that the client has paid or entrusted to the lawyer in the course of the representation. In re Robertson, 612 A.2d 1236, 1240 (D.C.1992). We shall require respondent to show proof that the Estates have been reimbursed, but not that she has repaid her sureties. Although a surety ordinarily has rights of reimbursement or other recourse against the primary obligor, see generally RESTATEMENT (THIRD) OF SURETYSHIP AND GUARANTY §§ 22-24 (Reimbursement) (1996), defenses are available, and the rights may be modified or limited by the terms of the suretyship contract. Respondent's contracts with her sureties, which are not included in the record before us, may or may not entitle them to obtain repayment from her. We doubt, moreover, that § 3(b) of D.C. Bar Rule XI was intended to authorize us to require such repayment in a disciplinary proceeding. [18] Respondent's sureties do not need our assistance in this ancillary proceeding to enforce their legal rights.
Turning to the main question, although the Board and Bar Counsel agree that respondent should be required to show proof of her fitness to practice law as a further condition of reinstatement, see D.C. Bar R. XI, § 3(a)(2), [19] they disagree on the proper rationale for such a requirement. The disagreement is understandable. With some degree of discomfort, perhaps, this Court has found itself admitting on more than one occasion that we have not yet undertaken to enunciate a precise standard as to when a fitness requirement should be imposed. In re Steele, 630 A.2d 196, 201 (D.C.1993); accord, In re Small, 760 A.2d 612, 614 (D.C.2000); In re Robinson, 736 A.2d 983, 990 (D.C.1999); In re Chisholm, 679 A.2d 495, 503 (D.C.1996). The Board invites us  indeed, it urges us  to clarify the standard that should govern the imposition of a fitness requirement in this and future cases. The Board advances cogent reasons why clarification is desirable, and it has undertaken to develop and propose a particular standard for our consideration. Bar Counsel disputes the need for doctrinal clarification and opposes the Board's new standard. [20] We are aware that since the Board issued its report in this case, it has been using its proposed test in deciding whether to recommend a fitness requirement in other cases involving suspension. Some of those other cases, in which Bar Counsel has jousted with the Board over what has come to be called the Cater standard, already have come before us. Until now we have found it unnecessary to settle the dispute between Bar Counsel and the Board. [21] But as the question has been percolating and will continue to be raised and fought over until it is resolved, and as the Board is telling us that it seeks our guidance in this area, we think the time has come for this Court to address the subject. In lieu of stating a single test, past cases of this Court have phrased the question in different ways. In Steele, we conditioned reinstatement on proof of fitness because we could not be reasonably assured of the respondent's fitness to engage in the practice of law otherwise. Steele, 630 A.2d at 201. Alternatively, we imposed a fitness requirement in another case because we believed that the respondent's misconduct cast[] serious doubt on his ability to practice law ethically. In re Siegel, 635 A.2d 345, 346 (D.C.1993). In one recent case, we stated that the issue turns on whether substantial questions remain about respondent's fitness to practice law. Robinson, 736 A.2d at 990. We also have said that where a respondent manifestly has difficulty implementing necessary reforms, a fitness requirement may be necessary unless there exists a reasonably effective alternative means of protecting the public. Edwards, 870 A.2d at 97. Regardless of the phraseology, we often have found it useful to consider the same factors that guide us in determining whether to reinstate attorneys who have been suspended (or disbarred): (1) the nature and circumstances of the misconduct for which the attorney was disciplined; (2) whether the attorney recognizes the seriousness of the misconduct; (3) the attorney's conduct since discipline was imposed, including the steps taken to remedy past wrongs and prevent future ones; (4) the attorney's present character; and (5) the attorney's present qualifications and competence to practice law. In re Roundtree, 503 A.2d 1215, 1217 (D.C.1985); see, e.g., Chisholm, 679 A.2d at 503-04. [22] As the Board points out, however, these factors are not so helpful in failure to cooperate cases, wherein there may be no evidence as to any factor but the first. Particularly (but by no means exclusively) in failure to cooperate cases, our tendency since Siegel therefore has been to base the decision whether to impose a fitness requirement almost entirely on a comparison with similar cases. See, e.g., In re Artis, 883 A.2d 85, 95 (D.C.2005). As a result, our focus has been `upon the egregiousness of the attorneys' deliberate disregard for the disciplinary process.' Id. (quoting Delaney, 697 A.2d at 1214). The Board persuades us that articulation of a clear standard for the imposition of a fitness requirement is desirable for a number of reasons. The inconsistency in our terminology risks confusing and obscuring the nature and purpose of the inquiry and the burdens of proof and persuasion. For example, Steele 's focus on whether we are reasonably assured that the respondent is fit (or will be fit after serving the defined period of suspension) suggests that it is the respondent who bears the burden of persuasion and proof, while our emphasis in Siegel on the existence of a serious doubt about the respondent's fitness implies that it is Bar Counsel who bears those burdens. That the conflict is real and not merely semantic is indicated by the disagreement between the Board and Bar Counsel in this very case: the Board favors the formulation in Siegel while Bar Counsel objects to that choice and prefers the articulation in Steele. The checklist of relevant factors drawn from Roundtree does not resolve the question; such a checklist is useful only if there is a standard to which the factors can be related. Nor is additional guidance provided by an egregiousness test. And as the Board emphasizes, [t]o impose a fitness requirement based only upon a comparison of similar cases in the absence of a clearly articulated standard runs the risk of elevating the value of `consistency' of our decisions over the paramount consideration  the objective to be achieved in imposing the requirement. [23] In settling upon an appropriate standard, the objective of the fitness requirement is clearly the place to start. The standard must correspond to and promote the objective. As the Board notes, the reason for conditioning reinstatement on proof of rehabilitation, D.C. Bar R. XI, § 3(a)(2), is conceptually different from the reason for suspending a respondent for a period of time. The fixed period of suspension is intended to serve as the commensurate response to the attorney's past ethical misconduct. In contrast, the open-ended fitness requirement is intended to be an appropriate response to serious concerns about whether the attorney will act ethically and competently in the future, after the period of suspension has run. Primarily, our concern is that [the attorney's] `resumption of the practice of law will not be detrimental to the integrity and standing of the Bar, or to the administration of justice, or subversive to the public interest.' Steele, 630 A.2d at 201 (quoting Roundtree, 503 A.2d at 1217); see D.C. Bar R. XI, § 16(d). The license to practice law in the District of Columbia is a continuing proclamation by this Court that the holder is fit to be entrusted with professional and judicial matters, and to aid in the administration of justice as an attorney and an officer of the court. D.C. Bar R. XI, § 2(a). [24] Thus, while the decision to suspend an attorney for misconduct turns largely on the determination of historical facts, the decision to impose a fitness requirement turns on a partly subjective, predictive evaluation of the attorney's character and ability. (This is the reason hearing committees, the Board and this Court often have found it difficult to decide whether to recommend or impose a fitness requirement.) In practice, to be sure, the clear and convincing evidence that establishes the predicate violation of professional norms is usually much the same evidence that evokes doubts about the respondent's future fitness to adhere to those norms. That, of course, is why the question of fitness frequently arises in disciplinary proceedings. Nonetheless, proof of a violation of the Rules that merits even a substantial period of suspension is not necessarily sufficient to justify a fitness requirement, [25] while evidence of circumstances surrounding and contributing to the misconduct may be what tips the balance in favor of the condition. [26] The standard also must be designed so as not to vitiate one of the most valuable tools in the disciplinary armamentarium. The length of a period of suspension reflects the gravity of the attorney's misconduct and is fixed with the aim of individual correction as well as general deterrence. Nonetheless, the period of suspension that may be justified in a given case of misconduct may not be enough by itself to protect the public, the courts and the integrity of the legal profession. The more unlikely it is that the attorney will be rehabilitated by the end of the predetermined suspension term, the more the need for additional protection. In such cases, the chief, if not the only, [27] means at our disposal is to require proof of fitness as a condition of reinstatement. We must take care not to erect unnecessary impediments to our resort to this remedy. There is a countervailing consideration, however, that we cannot ignore. In fashioning the test for conditioning reinstatement on proof of rehabilitation, we must take into account the consequences for respondent attorneys. The fitness requirement can be a tail that wags the disciplinary dog. We are reluctant to impose it if the need is not amply demonstrated, as that requirement may have the practical effect of greatly prolonging  even tripling or quadrupling  a respondent's period of suspension. Edwards, 870 A.2d at 97. As the Board report in this case helpfully explains: A suspended attorney required to prove fitness prior to returning to practice must obtain an order of reinstatement from the Court of Appeals. D.C. Bar R. XI, § 16. The standards and procedures are the same whether the attorney is disbarred or suspended. Id. The process begins with a petition for reinstatement to the Board. D.C. Bar R. XI, § 16(d); Board Rule 9.1. If the petition is neither insufficient on its face nor defective, it is referred to a Hearing Committee. D.C.Bar. R. XI, § 16(d). At the hearing, the suspended attorney has the burden to prove by clear and convincing evidence that he or she has the moral qualifications, competency, and learning in law required for readmission; and [t]hat the resumption of the practice of law by the attorney will not be detrimental to the integrity and standing of the Bar, or to the administration of justice, or subversive to the public interest. D.C. Bar R. XI, § 16(d). Following the hearing, a Report and Recommendation to the Board is issued. D.C. Bar R. XI, § 16(d). Next, the Board reviews the matter. If either the petitioner or Bar Counsel files exceptions to the Hearing Committee's Report and Recommendation, the Board accepts briefs from the parties and hears oral argument. It then issues a Report and Recommendation, which is filed with the Court of Appeals for final decision. If the Board's recommendation is opposed by either the petitioner or Bar Counsel, the Court allows further briefing before issuing its final decision. Id. § 16(e). No one can mistake the burdens attendant to a reinstatement proceeding. These proceedings take approximately eighteen months, In re Steele, 630 A.2d [at] 201 n. 5, [28] but may take appreciably longer. See, e.g., In re Brown, 617 A.2d 194, 196 (D.C.1992) (disbarred attorney petitioned for reinstatement in 1987, denied in 1992); In re Tinsley, 668 A.2d 833, 834 (D.C.1995) (per curiam) (attorney suspended for one year in December 1990 denied reinstatement five years later). They involve three distinct proceedings before a Hearing Committee, the Board, and the Court of Appeals. Assistance of knowledgeable counsel is an obvious benefit and  equally obvious  it is costly. Represented or not, the petitioner will devote substantial time and energy to the process. See also In re Morrell, 859 A.2d 644 (D.C.2004) (describing contents of petition for reinstatement). Because an attorney's fitness to practice is a subjective evaluation, the Board would not require Bar Counsel to prove the attorney is, in fact, unfit to practice in order to justify a fitness requirement. Instead, balancing the competing considerations, the Board has concluded that the most appropriate standard is whether there exists a `serious doubt' of a respondent's fitness to practice law. This means, the Board explains, that to justify conditioning the reinstatement of a suspended attorney on proof of rehabilitation, the record in the disciplinary proceeding must contain clear and convincing evidence that casts a serious doubt upon the attorney's continuing fitness to practice law. In this formulation, the Board uses the term doubt to connote real skepticism, not just a lack of certainty. We approve the Board's proposed test. We agree, first of all, that imposition of a fitness requirement must be justified by evidence in the record of the disciplinary proceeding that calls the respondent's fitness into question. The burden of proof, in other words, belongs to the proponent of the sanction, i.e., Bar Counsel. Second, we agree that Bar Counsel should be required to establish a serious doubt as to the respondent's fitness to practice law in order to justify conditioning the respondent's reinstatement on proof of rehabilitation. The serious doubt test is derived from, and is essentially consistent with, our precedents, including Steele ; Siegel and Robinson. Requiring any greater showing would be impractical and would be insufficiently protective of the public, the courts and the legal profession. But if no serious doubt exists about an attorney's fitness, it would be unnecessary and unfair to augment the sanction of a limited period of suspension with such an onerous obligation. Any incremental benefits from a more unrestrained resort to the imposition of fitness conditions would be speculative at best. Finally, we agree with the Board that the requisite serious doubt must be generated by evidence that is clear and convincing. When we speak of clear and convincing evidence, we mean more than a preponderance of the evidence; we mean evidence that will produce in the mind of the trier of fact a firm belief or conviction as to the facts sought to be established. Dortch, 860 A.2d at 358 (quoting In re T.J., 666 A.2d 1, 16 n. 17 (D.C.1995)). A firm belief in a serious doubt may sound like an oxymoron, but in fact there is nothing illogical or unusual about insisting on it. In most cases, it is the attorney's misconduct, which does have to be proved by clear and convincing evidence, see Anderson, 778 A.2d at 335, that casts the requisite serious doubt on the attorney's fitness. If the misconduct that is established by clear and convincing evidence is not grave enough by itself to evoke such doubt, and Bar Counsel relies on other, aggravating facts to justify enhancing the sanction of suspension with a fitness requirement, we think the same standard of proof should apply to those aggravating facts as a matter of logic and fairness. It is true that Bar Counsel ordinarily need not prove that a particular sanction, for example the precise length of a period of suspension, is justified by clear and convincing evidence. The difference here stems from our holding that the fitness requirement depends on a specific finding beyond the finding of a violation of the Rules. As Anderson itself illustrates, clear and convincing proof may be required when a finding of an aggravating fact is what determines whether a sanction enhancement will be imposed. The issue arose in Anderson in connection with the sanction for misappropriation of client funds, a violation of Rule 1.15(a). While negligent misappropriation typically merits a suspension of six months, reckless or intentional misappropriation almost always warrants disbarment. We held that even though the level of culpability is not part of the Rule violation, Bar Counsel must prove the mental state required for disbarment by clear and convincing evidence. 778 A.2d at 338. It is worth adding that, while a fitness requirement is not quite as severe an enhancement as disbarment, it comes close; as we have explained, it can transform a thirty-day suspension into one that lasts for years. That difference further persuades us, as we were persuaded in Anderson, that our law requires Bar Counsel to prove the facts that justify the enhancement with evidence that is clear and convincing. The Roundtree factors will continue to be useful in determining whether a serious doubt arises as to an attorney's fitness, though we acknowledge that these factors are somewhat less useful where the attorney has failed to participate in the disciplinary inquiry. For the latter cases, the Board proposes to address the question of fitness by focusing on three factors: (1) the respondent's level of cooperation in the pending proceeding(s), (2) the repetitive nature of the respondent's lack of cooperation in disciplinary proceedings, and (3) other evidence that may reflect on fitness. Bar Counsel questions the utility of this tripartite test and cites existing precedent, under which an attorney's deliberate failure to cooperate at all during the course of disciplinary proceedings has been held sufficient to justify both suspending the attorney and imposing a fitness requirement. See, e.g., Mattingly, 790 A.2d 579; In re Giles, 741 A.2d 1062 (D.C.1999); Delaney, 697 A.2d at 1213-14; Lockie, 649 A.2d at 547; Siegel, 635 A.2d at 346. (Less egregious disregard of the disciplinary process, on the other hand, has been found not to warrant a fitness requirement). See Artis, 883 A.2d at 96. Indeed, [i]n circumstances where the respondent has repeatedly evinced indifference (or worse) toward the disciplinary procedures by which the Bar regulates itself, a requirement that the attorney prove fitness to resume practice is entirely reasonable. Siegel, supra . In and of itself, such behavior raises a serious question about the attorney's continuing capacity and willingness to fulfill his or her professional obligations. As we see it, the Board's approach to failure to cooperate cases is fully compatible with this principle. The Board simply has undertaken to adapt the Roundtree factors to the realities of such cases, and we find nothing objectionable in its doing so. The relevance of the first two factors is undeniable, and the catchall third factor ensures that any other relevant facts will be taken into account.
In accordance with D.C. Bar Rule XI, § 9(g), we adopt the Board's recommendation to condition respondent's reinstatement on proof of fitness. Even if we merely considered the three cases in which respondent has failed to respond to Bar Counsel's inquiries and the Board's orders, we would find a fitness requirement consistent with the dispositions in comparable cases and appropriate to the concerns raised by respondent's proven misconduct. As the Board states, the circumstances reveal a pattern of lack of cooperation in multiple proceedings over an eighteen month period. Coming after her appearances before the Hearing Committee in BDN 139-01, respondent's refusals to cooperate in BDN 372-01 and 428-01 indeed constitute[d] an egregious disregard for the disciplinary process. [29] The Board appreciated that respondent had been through some personal hardship, but it noted that this did not prevent her from advising the Hearing Committee in BDN 139-01 of her circumstances. We agree with the Board that [r]espondent's continuing reliance on the same personal hardship that formed the basis for the [Hearing] Committee's grant of a continuance ten months earlier [in BDN 139-01] cannot serve as a blanket protection from disciplinary sanction in BDN 372-01 and 428-01. The deliberate and unjustified disregard for the administration of justice exhibited by respondent causes us to entertain serious doubts as to her fitness to practice law. We would add that the proven circumstances of respondent's misconduct in failing to supervise her secretary supply additional compelling reasons to doubt her present qualifications and competence to practice law. Several of the surrounding facts are particularly disturbing. It is troubling that so many months passed after Ms. Summers absconded before respondent discovered that over $40,000 was missing from the Morton Estate account. Respondent's written explanation for the delay, see footnote 5, supra, is hardly reassuring; on the contrary, it reveals inattention to her fiduciary duties bordering on paralysis, or even willful blindness, in the face of mounting evidence of serious problems with the account. For the same reasons, it is troubling that so many more months passed after the defalcations from the Morton Estate account were finally discovered before respondent discovered and reported that the Hinton Estate too had been invaded. A conscientious attorney in respondent's position would have checked the condition of all her other conservatorship accounts posthaste upon finding out that her secretary had embezzled funds from one of them. Lastly, we cannot ignore respondent's unexplained failure to appear at the hearing in BDN 337-99a failure all the more significant because the hearing was rescheduled to accommodate respondent and enable her to participate. That she did not attend the rescheduled hearing is another clear indication that respondent lacked, and may still lack, the capacity to function as an effective and responsible attorney. Taking all the warning signals into consideration, we have the most serious doubts about whether respondent will be fit to resume the practice of law at the end of her prescribed period of suspension. The evidence engendering those doubts is clear and convincing, and respondent has failed to refute it.