Opinion ID: 2391955
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Complaint of Paul Brobbey.

Text: Mr. Brobbey was out of the country and unavailable to testify at the hearing. A copy of the transcript of his testimony before the inquiry panel was submitted as an exhibit (Petitioner's Exhibit # 11) in this case. According to the testimony and evidence presented at the inquiry panel hearing, the Respondent represented Mr. Brobbey from July 1996 through July 2000. The Respondent submitted an application for an I-30 immigration status on Mr. Brobbey's behalf, which was rejected. Mr. Brobbey testified that he called the Respondent upon learning of the denial and stated that it took the Respondent three days to return his call. In June 2000, Mr. Brobbey met with the Respondent at his [Respondent's] office in Silver Spring, Maryland. The Respondent thereafter filed an untimely motion and/or appeal concerning the I-30 application denial. Mr. Brobbey was ultimately incarcerated and placed on a schedule to be deported. The Respondent visited him in prison, and told him that there was nothing he could do for him and that his only choice was to sign the deportation letter and wait to be deported. While Mr. Brobbey was in prison, his sister told him that she had learned that the Respondent had been disbarred [ sic, suspended]. Mr. Brobbey testified that during the course of the representation, the Respondent never returned his calls and when he did (typically a week to a couple of weeks later), he `never had anything to say' to him. He said the problem got worse when the Respondent moved his office from the fifth floor to the sixth floor. Mr. Brobbey testified that the Respondent held himself out as an attorney and never told him that his license to practice law had been suspended. Mr. Brobbey claims to have paid the Respondent between $6,000.00 and $8,000.00 for legal services and alleges that the Respondent did little or nothing on his behalf. Although Mr. Brobbey's sister was able to obtain his file from the Respondent, he claims entitlement to a refund of the fees he paid to the Respondent for the representation. In November 2000, Mr. Brobbey retained new counsel who filed a motion to reopen his case; this motion was granted.