Opinion ID: 1630433
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: whether failure to file income tax returns reflected adversely on byrd's honesty, trustworthiness or fitness as a lawyer in other respects

Text: ¶ 9. Under Rule 8.4(b) of the Mississippi Rules of Professional Conduct, a lawyer commits professional misconduct when he commit[s] a criminal act that reflects adversely on the lawyer's honesty, trustworthiness or fitness as a lawyer in other respects. Pertinent to this case is the comment to Rule 8.4 which states that Many kinds of illegal conduct reflect adversely on fitness to practice law, such as offenses involving fraud and the offense of willful failure to file an income tax return.  (emphasis added). While Byrd vehemently asserts that his failure to file was due to procrastination on his part, he acknowledged that he knew he was required to file. His reasons for not filing cannot be characterized as anything other than willful even though he had no intent to defraud the government. ¶ 10. Since the issue presented in this case is one of first impression in Mississippi, we look to other jurisdictions which have handled similar cases. The Court of Appeals of Maryland has held that failure to file income tax returns violates Rule 8.4(b). Attorney Grievance Comm'n v. Atkinson, 357 Md. 646, 745 A.2d 1086, 1091 (2000). In Atkinson, the attorney failed to file federal and state income tax returns from 1988 to 1996. Id. at 1087. In upholding an indefinite suspension, the court held that The repeated failure to file tax returns particularly when it span[ned] an uninterrupted period of over ten years is not a minor criminal offense, is a dishonest act, and reflects adversely on a lawyer's honesty, trustworthiness and fitness to practice law. A conviction for tax evasion is not a necessary predicate to support a finding of dishonesty. Id. at 1091. See also In re O'Connell, 687 N.E.2d 573 (Ind.1997) (holding that failure to file a state return was a serious crime that reflected adversely upon an attorney's honesty, trustworthiness and fitness as a lawyer); In re Tootle, 334 S.C. 20, 511 S.E.2d 687 (1999) (same); In re Boggs, 324 S.C. 243, 478 S.E.2d 838 (1996) (same). Since Maryland's version of Rule 8.4(b) is exactly the same as Mississippi's version and the result in Atkinson is well-founded and reasonable, we conclude that failure to file income tax returns is a violation of M.R.P.C. 8.4(b).