Attorney Grievance Commission v. Paul

Md.October 31, 2011No. Misc. Docket AG No. 51, September Term, 2007Cited 32 times

Defendant WinMcNamee, Hosea, Jernigan and Kim

Case Details

Judge(s): Bell, Adkins, Battaglia, Barbera
Status: Published
Procedural Posture: bench trial

Related Laws

No specific laws identified for this ruling.

Outcome

Attorney Dana Andrew Paul was found to have violated only Maryland Rule of Professional Conduct 8.4(d) for conduct prejudicial to the administration of justice by altering and filing a stipulation of dismissal without opposing counsel's authorization. He was exonerated of violations of Rules 3.3 and 8.4(b) and the related criminal statute.

What This Ruling Means

**What Happened:** Attorney Dana Andrew Paul got into trouble for changing and filing a legal document without permission from the opposing lawyer. The Attorney Grievance Commission (which oversees lawyer conduct in Maryland) brought a case against him, claiming he violated several professional rules for attorneys and possibly broke criminal laws. **What the Court Decided:** The court found that Paul only violated one rule - Rule 8.4(d), which prohibits conduct that harms the justice system. However, the court cleared him of the more serious charges, including lying to a court (Rule 3.3) and dishonesty (Rule 8.4(b)), as well as any criminal wrongdoing. **Why This Matters for Workers:** This case shows that even when lawyers make mistakes in handling cases, there are limits to how severely they can be punished. For workers involved in employment disputes, this demonstrates that the legal system has checks and balances - lawyers face consequences for misconduct, but courts carefully examine each situation. If you're ever concerned about your lawyer's conduct in an employment case, know that there are oversight systems in place, though proving serious misconduct requires strong evidence.

This summary was generated to explain the ruling in plain English and is not legal advice.

Similar Rulings

Cassilly

Md.Oct 2021

Defendant Win

Read Full Opinion More McNamee, Hosea, Jernigan and Kim Rulings All Rulings

Browse Related

Other legal employers

Facing something similar at work?

Court rulings like this one are useful, but every situation is different. Take 2 minutes to see which laws may protect you — it's free, private, and no account is required to start.

Check Your Rights Learn the Basics

This ruling information is sourced from public court records via CourtListener.com. It is provided for informational and educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.