In fiscal year July 2010 to June 2011, the Maryland Attorney Grievance Commission received 1,880 complaints, of which 429 were docketed for misconduct. Of these 429 docketed complaints, 24 attorneys were disbarred, 9 received suspensions, 33 were reprimanded, and 84 received a warning.
The most common reason for a disciplinary action was incompetence, lack of diligence, and failure to communicate with a client. The second most common reason was misconduct, including dishonesty, fraud, deceit, and/or misrepresentation. Other reasons for disciplinary actions included criminal acts or convictions, misappropriation of clients’ funds, and failure to maintain complete records of the attorney’s trust account.
