The Supreme Court of Ohio annual report - Supreme Court - State of ...

This office conducted the annual Fall Bar Counsel Seminar on
Oct. 25, 2007, which had 19 participants, primarily representing the
certified grievance committees of the local bar associations across
Ohio.
Jonathan E. Coughlan was elected vice-president of the Board of
Directors of the Association of Judicial Disciplinary Counsel. He
also served on the Task Force on the Code of Judicial Conduct. Amy
C. Stone served as chair of the Unlicensed Practice of Law Central
Registry Work Group, which is sponsored by the Supreme Court Board
on the Unauthorized Practice of Law. Finally, Robert R. Berger served
as a member of the Guidelines and Publications Work Group of the
Court’s Advisory Committee on Technology & the Courts.
Board of Commissioners on Grievances
& Discipline
The Board of Commissioners on Grievances & Discipline was
established by Rule V of the Rules for the Government of the Bar and
is charged with administering, interpreting and enforcing Rule V to
provide lawyer and judge discipline for ethical misconduct. The board
also serves under state law as the ethics commission for the filing of
more than 1,800 financial disclosure statements required of Ohio
judges, judicial candidates and magistrates.
In 2007, the board added four new
members appointed by the Supreme
Court of Ohio. The board met on
eight days and received 105 formal
complaints filed by the Office of
Disciplinary Counsel and the certified
grievance committees of local bar
associations. The board held 82
hearings and certified 70 matters to
the Supreme Court, disposing of 92
cases. Thirteen Ohio lawyers resigned
from the practice of law with discipline
Board members conduct a hearing at the Ohio Judicial Center. pending as a result of disciplinary
investigations and the filing of formal
complaints. There were 115 matters pending on the board’s docket at
the end of the year.
Five present and former board members and Secretary Jonathan W.
Marshall sat on the Supreme Court Task Force on Rules of Professional
Conduct, appointed by Chief Justice Moyer. Ohio’s new Rules of
Professional Conduct became effective on Feb. 1, 2007, and the board’s
staff devoted significant time to educating the bench and bar of the
impact of the new lawyer rules.
In the summer of 2007, the Chief Justice appointed a statewide
task force to study the new American Bar Association (ABA) Code
of Judicial Conduct. Seven members of the task force are current or
former board members; the board secretary also is a member. The
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