P:\CLEPUB\Books\Disciplinary Board Reporter ... - Oregon State Bar

Cite as In re Ryan, 19 DB Rptr 41 (2005)
submitted her sworn statement to the Bar on May 8, 1997, the Bar only required her
to make representations regarding her past conduct during her period of suspension.
The statement the Bar required the Accused to swear to is not drafted in such a
manner as to clearly require one to make a representation about his or her future
intentions.
Sanction
The Bar requests that the Accused be suspended from the practice of law for
two years. The purpose of lawyer disciplinary proceedings is not to punish the
lawyer, but to protect the public and the administration of justice from lawyers who
have not discharged, will not discharge, or are unlikely properly to discharge their
professional duties to clients, the public, the legal system, and the legal profession.
American Bar Association’s Standards for Imposing Lawyer Sanctions (1991)
(amended 1992) (“ABA Standards”), § 1.1; In re Bourcier, supra, 325 Or at 437 (to
same effect).
In considering the appropriate sanction for the violations found, we refer to
the ABA Standards and to Oregon case law. In re Meyer, 328 Or 220, 226, 970 P2d
647 (1999). We consider (1) the ethical duty violated; (2) the accused lawyer’s
mental state; and (3) the actual or potential injury caused by the accused lawyer’s
misconduct. If mitigating or aggravating circumstances are present, we consider those
as a fourth factor and determine whether the sanction should be adjusted (i.e.,
increased or decreased). In determining the correct sanction, we are also to examine
the conduct of an accused in light of prior Oregon case law.
A. Duty Violated. The Accused’s conduct in failing to notify those
concerned of her administrative suspension violated her duty of honesty to her
clients, the public, and the legal profession. ABA Standards, §§ 4.0, 5.0, 7.0. The
Accused also breached her duty to the public and to the legal profession to refrain
from the unauthorized practice of law. ABA Standards, §§ 5.0, 7.0. See In re Devers,
328 Or 230, 241, 974 P2d 191 (1999) (identifying these duties as those violated by
a lawyer engaging in analogous conduct).
B. Mental State. The Accused acted intentionally when she falsely stated
under oath that she had not engaged in the unauthorized practice of law during the
period of her suspension. The Accused consciously made the statement, knowing it
to be false, in order to be reinstated as quickly as possible once she had the money
available to pay the PLF premium and reinstatement fee. See ABA Standards, p. 17
(stating that an act is intentional if it is done with a conscious objective or purpose
to accomplish a particular result). The Accused also acted intentionally when she
failed to disclose to her clients and others on April 25, 1997, and May 6, 1997, that
she was suspended from the practice of law.
C. Injury. “Injury” is harm to a client, the public, the legal system, or the
profession which results from a lawyer’s misconduct. The level of injury can range
from “little or no” injury to “serious” injury; a reference to “injury” alone indicates
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