On the OWI count, Johnson received a one-year jail sentence with all but ten days suspended and was placed on probation for one year. Rule 32:8.4(d) provides that "[i]t is professional misconduct for a lawyer to . C. The Dallas County Case. As we have noted, the parties stipulated to a suspension of twelve to eighteen months, and the commission recommended an eighteen-month suspension. If the Board decides to file a formal complaint with the Grievance Commission, those proceedings require additional time. 573, 815 P.2d 1257, 1265 (1991) (en banc) (per curiam)). Johnson was only convicted once of driving while under revocation, but the stipulated record indicates that he did so on three occasions. We ask that you edit only for style or to shorten, provide proper attribution and link to our web site. F$!|GWL+P)JOr7]G$QLg+:hhJg&hp^UDJ_-e}pjtF(Vb3aku3%V#wbEcc_R" Tara van Brederode and Allison A. Schmidt, Des Moines, for complainant. Deputy Editor Clark Kauffman has worked during the past 30 years as both an investigative reporter and editorial writer at two of Iowas largest newspapers, the Des Moines Register and the Quad-City Times. In a divorce case, Leitner secretly inserted new language in an agreement without notifying the opposing attorney, actions the judge in that case found showed "an intent to deceive." In addition to a clear, written statement describing the alleged unethical conduct, copies of important documents should be attached. 2023 Iowa Judicial Branch. Leitner responded only that the "investigation is ongoing" and refused to identify what damages McFadden and his businesses purportedly suffered. Fisher was also accused of ethics violations tied to his representation of an Iowa woman in a divorce case. misconduct by a convincing preponderance of the evidence." Iowa Sup. LICENSE SUSPENDED. Our primary purpose for imposing sanctions is not to punish the lawyer but to protect the public. Iowa Sup. Rule 32:8.4(b) provides that "[i]t is professional misconduct for a lawyer to . Attorneys cannot ignore a ruling of a tribunal made in the course of a proceeding. the COVID-19 pandemic, an Iowa attorney fought a continuing battle against methamphetamine and opiate abuse. Another aggravating factor is a previous private admonishment for making an extrajudicial statement regarding a pending criminal matter concerning his two sons.
iowa attorney discipline cases