Another Cautionary Tale

The Delaware Supreme Court has ordered a 21-month suspension retroactive to November 2014 of an attorney who fell asleep at the wheel while intoxicated and caused serious injuries to another driver.

Delaware online had the story of the crash.

The attorney was admitted in 2002 and made a partner of his firm in 2012.

He had transferred to disability inactive status as of November 2014 after the bar sought a suspension based on the conviction.

Although the attorney had a 2008 DUI, he had not recognized that the was an alcoholic until the incident here.

The report of the Board on Professional Responsibility (appended to the Court’s opinion) tells the story of his late-blooming recognition of his condition and laudable steps in recovery.

Worth a read and maybe an assignment for a professional responsibility class on bar discipline. (Mike Frisch)