Opinion ID: 2320057
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 8

Heading: Exceptions filed by Respondent.

Text: Pursuant to Maryland Rule 16-758(b), within 15 days after service of notice that the disciplinary hearing record has been filed, each party may file written exceptions to the findings of fact and conclusions of law rendered by the hearing judge. Judge Johnson filed his written Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law on 8 May 2006. Any exceptions, therefore, had to be filed on or before 23 May 2006. Petitioner timely filed its Exceptions and Recommendation for Sanction on 23 May 2006. Respondent, however, did not file his Exceptions until 26 May 2006. Petitioner filed a motion to strike Respondent's Exceptions on 23 June 2006, 7 days after apparently being served with a copy of Respondent's Exceptions via the U.S. mail. [26] In Attorney Grievance Commission v. Stolarz, we held that Maryland Rule 16-759 requires this Court, when exceptions to the hearing judge's findings are taken properly, to determine whether the findings of fact have been proven by the requisite standards of proof set out in Rule 16-757(b). 379 Md. at 397, 842 A.2d at 47 (emphasis added). By the same token, if exceptions to the findings of fact and conclusions of law are not taken properly, such as not timely filed, this Court may choose not to consider them. When asked at oral argument for an explanation as to why his Exceptions were filed untimely, Steinberg explained that he had in hand a motion for leave of court to file late when he arrived at our Court Clerk's office to file his Exceptions. A rather tall man working at the front desk informed him, Oh you don't have to worry about filing this. It is only 2 or 3 days late. You're not going to have a problem. Further, Steinberg claimed that the rather tall man declined to accept the motion. When asked by the Court, Respondent could not recall the name of the person he had spoken to, nor was he able to produce the unfiled motion. We take judicial notice that there were only two male employees in our Court Clerk's office on or about 26 May 2006. One of them is highly unlikely to be described by a person of normal perception as rather tall. The other, Alexander Cummings, Esquire, the Clerk of this Court, would not excuse a late filing, as apparently claimed by Respondent, nor is he empowered to do so, in any event. Respondent's explanation is wholly unbelievable. Notwithstanding the procedural defect in Respondent's filing of his Exceptions, Steinberg's exceptions are unpersuasive on their merits. In his Exceptions, Steinberg does not raise any challenges to the express findings of fact made by the hearing judge; instead, he makes several legal assertions which boil down to two primary contentions. The first involves whether it was an abuse of discretion for the hearing judge to enter an Order of Default. The second relates to whether Respondent was given a fair opportunity to represent himself at the 2 March 2006 ex parte proof hearing. Respondent first argues that he was not served by Petitioner's employee, Mr. Dennis F. Biennas, on 3 November 2005, with all of the documents purported to have been served upon him, i.e., the Petition for Disciplinary or Remedial Action, Writ of Summons, and various discovery documents. Respondent claims that the packet of documents actually received from the process server contained only the discovery documents, but did not contain the Petition and Summons. Respondent, therefore, argues that the hearing judge improperly entered the Order of Default following Steinberg's failure to file a Maryland Rule 16-754(c) responsive pleading because he was served improperly. Respondent, following service by Mr. Biennas, filed a naked Certificate of Service with the Clerk's office in the Circuit Court stating that he had responded to the Petitioner's Request for Admission of Facts. The actual responses were mailed to Petitioner on or about 3 December 2005. Nestled in the body of Respondent's unilluminating response to the Request for Admissions was a statement that Respondent . . . ha[d] not received the Petition for Disciplinary or Remedial Action. According to Respondent, [t]his response put the Attorney Grievance Commission on notice of Respondent's claim that he had not received said Petition, and that it was improper for Petitioner to just file[] the Request for Default Judgment without inquiring further, properly serving a copy of the Petition, or otherwise taking action to contact Respondent regarding the alleged defective service. [27] This argument is unavailing. We hold, instead, that it was not an abuse of discretion by the hearing judge to enter the Order of Default. Maryland Rule 16-754(a) states that [d]efenses and objections to the petition, including insufficiency of service, shall be stated in the answer and not by preliminary motion. It is well-settled that [e]xcept as otherwise provided in these rules or by order of court, discovery material shall not be filed with the court. Instead, the party generating the discovery material shall serve the discovery material on all other parties and promptly shall file with the court a notice stating (A) the type of discovery material served, (B) the date and manner of service, and (c) the party or person served. The party generating the discovery material shall retain the original and shall make it available for inspection by any other party. This section does not preclude the use of discovery material at trial or as exhibits to support or oppose motions. Maryland Rule 2-401(d)(2). [28] An attorney with over 20 years experience as a litigator, such as Respondent claims to be, knows that requests for discovery and the responses thereto are not served concurrently on the court presiding over the case. Instead, the responses are served solely on the party requesting discovery, and only a copy of the Certificate of Service regarding the responses is filed with the clerk of the court. Even were we to accept Respondent's claim on its face, which we do not, Respondent clearly had notice that a disciplinary action had been filed against him, given that, consistent with his contention, discovery documents had been served upon him, to which he responded in part. Without a responsive pleading in the court file, however, asserting the insufficiency of service claim, it was not an abuse of discretion for the hearing judge to enter an order of default because he had no knowledge, prior to signing the order, of the alleged defect. [29] Service of the Petition and Summons upon Respondent was supported by the Affidavit of Service of Mr. Biennas filed in the court file. The affidavit expressly stated, under the penalties of perjury, that Respondent Steinberg was served personally with the Writ of Summons and Petition for Disciplinary or Remedial Action. This affidavit, by itself, was sufficient to support the order of default entered by Judge Johnson. Holly Hall Publ'ns, Inc. v. County Banking & Trust Co., 147 Md. App. 251, 259 n. 6, 807 A.2d 1201, 1206 n. 6 (2002) (The court may rely on affidavits in determining whether to enter a default judgment.). On 6 January 2006, Respondent filed a Motion to Vacate Default Judgment. Finding the reasoning in that motion unpersuasive, the hearing judge denied it on 10 February 2006, and proceeded with the ex parte proof hearing originally scheduled for 2 March 2006. Because a judge has broad discretion in ruling on a motion to vacate an order of default, Attorney Grievance Comm'n v. Ward, 394 Md. 1, 19-20, 904 A.2d 477, 488-89 (2006) (filed 2 August 2006), we shall not hold in this case that Judge Johnson abused his discretion. An attorney's failure to answer a Petition For Disciplinary or Remedial Action may result in an order of default judgment pursuant to Maryland Rule 16-754(c). According to that Rule, Maryland Rule 2-613 governs vacation of such an order after issuance. Rule 2-613(d) provides that [t]he [Respondent] may move to vacate the order of default within 30 days after its entry. The motion shall state the reasons for the failure to plead and the legal and factual basis for the defense to the claim.  Md. Rule 2-613(d) (emphasis added); see also Carter v. Harris, 312 Md. 371, 539 A.2d 1127 (1988) (holding that Rule 2-613(d) requires that the party moving to vacate state the legal and factual basis for vacating the default judgment). Rule 2-613(e), furthermore, provides that [i]f the court finds that there is a substantial and sufficient basis for an actual controversy as to the merits of the action and that it is equitable to excuse the failure to plead, the court shall vacate the order. One factor in determining whether to vacate an order of default is whether the respondent presents a satisfactory explanation . . . why he failed to answer the initial complaint within the time allowed. Attorney Grievance Comm'n v. Middleton, 360 Md. 34, 45, 756 A.2d 565, 571-72 (2000) (quoting Director of Finance v. Harris, 90 Md.App. 506, 515, 602 A.2d 191, 195 (1992)); Banegura v. Taylor, 312 Md. 609, 617-21, 541 A.2d 969, 973-75 (1988) (applying Maryland Rule 2-613(d)). In the present case, the Affidavit of Service of Mr. Biennas, the process server, clearly stated, under the penalties of perjury, that he personally served on Respondent the Petition for Disciplinary or Remedial Action, the Writ of Summons, Request for Production of Documents, Interrogatories and Request for Admission of Facts and Genuineness of Documents. Respondent's Motion to Vacate Default Judgment, however, contained only his bald and conclusory assertion that Respondent was never served with a Writ of Summon or Petition. Respondent's motion was not accompanied by any affidavit or oath bolstering his claim that he had not been served properly. A reasonable hearing judge could conclude, from the totality of the circumstances here, that Steinberg did not proffer an adequate reason for his failure to file a responsive pleading. Respondent's assertion that he never received proper service was unsupported by any evidence in the record, other than his bare allegation. Petitioner, on the other hand, provided an Affidavit of Service which specifically indicates that proper service was made. Mr. Biennas, furthermore, was called as a witness at the 2 March 2006 evidentiary hearing, where he testified, consistent with his affidavit, as to the contents of the packet of documents served on Respondent. Accordingly, we hold that it was not an abuse of discretion for the hearing judge to deny the motion to vacate. Respondent further argues that he was not able adequately to appear and represent himself at the 2 March 2006 hearing because he was out of the country in the weeks prior to and surrounding the hearing. Specifically, Steinberg contends that, on 18 February 2006, he filed a Motion for Continuance of Hearing scheduled for 2 March 2006, because he would be in Southeast Asia for reasons of business and pleasure from 20 February 2006 through 3 March 2006. Before the hearing judge ruled on this motion, Respondent left the country knowing that the continuance request had not been acted on. Steinberg told us at oral argument that he left his office staff on high alert looking for a ruling, and that he was prepared to terminate his vacation early in order to return in time for the hearing if the continuance request was denied. He further claimed that, had the motion been decided earlier (instead of on 1 March 2006 when it was denied), he could have made it back in time to defend his interests at the ex parte hearing, and could have represented himself adequately. We are not persuaded, and hold that his failure to appear at the hearing is inexcusable. In Cruis Along Boats, Inc. v. Langley, 255 Md. 139, 143, 257 A.2d 184, 187 (1969), we held that the grant of a continuance due to the anticipated absence of counsel from a proceeding is not automatic. Additionally, the granting or withholding of a continuance is discretionary with the trial court, and . . . [the judge's] action in this respect, unless arbitrary, will not be reviewed on appeal. Cruis Along Boats, Inc., 255 Md. at 142, 257 A.2d at 186; see also Greenstein v. Meister, 279 Md. 275, 368 A.2d 451 (1977) (holding that whether a matter constituted a proper grounds for continuance is within the discretion of the court). [30] That Respondent spent a significant sum of money on plane tickets and the like does not entitle him automatically to a continuance. Respondent knew that his continuance request had not yet been decided and nevertheless chose to leave the country with the matter unresolved. It was not an abuse of discretion for the hearing judge to conclude that Respondent's trip to Asia, whether for business or pleasure, was an insufficient reason to delay the proceedings further. Accordingly, we overrule the Respondent's exceptions.