Never Again

The Ohio Supreme Court did not simply deny an application for bar admission on character and fitness grounds. 

The court permanently barred any future application.

The applicant was born and received his legal education in Israel and obtained an LLM from Michigan State.

During the investigation into Wahidy’s character and fitness to practice law, the bar-admissions committee discovered that he had failed to disclose a number of significant facts regarding his past that he was required to disclose on his registration application, including his 1995 divorce, a foreclosure action, the insolvency of his failed business, a personal-injury action, charges of aggravated menacing and criminal damaging, and multiple jobs he had held. At the panel hearing, Wahidy admitted that he had signed his registration application and certified that his answers were complete and true, even though he knew they were not.

The court rejected the applicant’s various explanations for the disclosure lapses and also took into account his failure to deal with debt.

In sum

we adopt the board’s recommendation to disapprove Wahidy’s pending registration application. Based on Wahidy’s complete lack of candor throughout the admissions process, however, we order that Wahidy be forever precluded from reapplying for the privilege of practicing law in this state.

Justices O’Donnell and French would deny admission but permit a future application. (Mike Frisch)