Another Day In The Wisconsin Supreme Court

The Wisconsin Supreme Court approved a default on bar charges but substantially reduced the proposed sanction for the violations.

After conducting our independent review of the matter, we agree with the referee that, based on Attorney Roitburd’s failure to answer the complaint filed by the OLR, the OLR is entitled to a default judgment. However, we disagree with the referee that Attorney Roitburd’s professional misconduct warrants a two-year suspension of his Wisconsin law license. We conclude, instead, that a 60-day suspension is warranted. We agree with the referee that Attorney Roitburd should be ordered to pay the full costs of the proceeding. We decline to order restitution for the reasons explained below.

On sanction

Under the unique circumstances of this case, we conclude that a 60-day suspension is sufficient to accomplish these goals. This is the first time in the more than three decades since Attorney Roitburd’s admission to the Wisconsin bar that he has been the subject of professional discipline in this state. Until now, Attorney Roitburd has not created a reason to believe that the public, the courts, or the legal system must be protected from the risk of his misconduct. We note, too, that the three counts of misconduct at issue here do not evince an extensive pattern of indifference to our ethical rules. Finally, we note that our knowledge of Attorney Roitburd’s misconduct is limited to the facts alleged in the OLR’s complaint and established by Attorney Roitburd’s default. As a result, there is much we do not know about his work as personal representative of his mother’s estate, and about the estate itself.

It being Wisconsin, there is always controversy, here over both the result and a  separate opinion of Judge Prosser to be released at a later date.

SHIRLEY S. ABRAHAMSON, J. (concurring in part and dissenting in part). The OLR charged Attorney Roitburd with three violations of the Rules of Professional Conduct for Attorneys. I agree with the per curiam that the three violations were established by virtue of Attorney Roitburd’s default in these proceedings. I also agree that Attorney Roitburd should pay the full costs of this disciplinary proceeding. I agree, finally, that Attorney Roitburd’s compliance with all conditions imposed in the per curiam, including satisfaction of the judgment entered by the circuit court against him in Estate of Shirley Roitburd, Milwaukee County Case No. 06-PR-1840, should be required for reinstatement.

I disagree, however, with two aspects of the per curiam:

(I) I disagree with the four justices joining the OLR per curiam blocking release of Justice David T. Prosser’s separate writing and insisting that his writing be released at a later time. No basis exists for this action. Indeed, the four justices have violated the Supreme Court’s Internal Operating Procedures (IOP).

I disagree with the length of suspension imposed by the per curiam opinion. The per curiam grants Attorney Roitburd a 22-month reduction in the sanction requested in the OLR complaint to which he defaulted. There is no justification for this significant downward departure.

 Judge Bradley joined the concurring/dissenting opinion. (Mike Frisch)