Washington Lawyer - December 2017 - 43

DISCIPLINARY SUMMARIES
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Disciplinary Actions Taken by
the District of Columbia Court
of Appeals
Original Matters
In re Catherine E. Abbey. Bar No.
436925. September 21, 2017. The
D.C. Court of Appeals disbarred
Abbey. While retained to represent
a client in a personal injury matter,
Abbey engaged in reckless misappropriation and failed to promptly
notify and/or disburse entrusted
funds to a third party. Rules 1.15(a)
and 1.15(c).
Reciprocal Matters
In re Gary M. Anderson. Bar No.
261644. September 28, 2017. In a
reciprocal matter from Maryland,
the D.C. Court of Appeals imposed
functionally equivalent reciprocal
discipline and indefinitely suspended Anderson with fitness and
the right to petition for reinstatement after five years, or when
reinstated in Maryland. Anderson
failed to satisfy a prior conditional
diversion agreement offered in
Maryland and also engaged in
subsequent misconduct.
In re Jonathan K. Friedlander. Bar
No. 433895. September 28, 2017. In
a reciprocal matter from Maryland,
the D.C. Court of Appeals imposed
identical reciprocal discipline and
disbarred Friedlander nunc pro
tunc to July 6, 2017. In Maryland,
Friedlander acknowledged sufficient evidence could be
produced to establish that he delegated authority of his firm's trust
account to a nonlawyer, who then
subsequently misappropriated
entrusted funds.
In re Mike Meier. Bar No. 444132.
September 7, 2017. In a reciprocal
matter from Virginia, the D.C. Court
of Appeals imposed identical reciprocal discipline and suspended
Meier for 30 days. In Virginia, Meier
stipulated to engaging in frivolous
litigation and making false statements of fact or law to a tribunal
while representing a client.

In re Steven E. Mirsky. Bar No.
947531. September 28, 2017. In a
reciprocal matter from Maryland,
the D.C. Court of Appeals imposed
functionally equivalent reciprocal
discipline and suspended Mirsky
for 90 days with fitness. In
Maryland, Mirsky acknowledged
overdrafting his attorney trust
account, commingling personal
funds with entrusted funds, and
failing to comply with recordkeeping requirements.
In re Christopher W. Poverman. Bar
No. 437053. September 28, 2017. In
a reciprocal matter from Maryland,
the D.C. Court of Appeals imposed
functionally equivalent reciprocal
discipline and suspended
Poverman for one year with
fitness. Poverman was found to
have failed to respond to repeated
disciplinary inquiries and made
knowing false statements on his
registration statement when he
certified that no disciplinary
matters were pending.
In re Ariel Strauss. Bar No. 4952120.
September 28, 2017. In a reciprocal
matter from Massachusetts, the
D.C. Court of Appeals imposed
identical reciprocal discipline and
suspended Strauss for six months,
with the conditions imposed in
Massachusetts, nunc pro tunc to
July 10, 2017. Strauss was found to
have misappropriated entrusted
funds but without the intent to
deprive the client of her funds.
In re Elena M. Tilly. Bar No. 502996.
September 7, 2017. In a reciprocal
matter from Maryland, the D.C.
Court of Appeals imposed functionally equivalent reciprocal discipline and indefinitely suspended
Tilly with fitness and the right to
petition for reinstatement after
five years or when reinstated in
Maryland, whichever occurs first.
In Maryland, Tilly acknowledged
that sufficient evidence could be
produced to sustain allegations
of unauthorized practice of law,
failing to supervise a nonlawyer

assistant, continuing to employ
the assistant after learning that he
had fraudulently filed documents
using her signature stamp, failing
to hold client funds in trust, lack of
candor to a tribunal, incompetence, and repeated dishonesty.
In re David C. Venie. Bar No.
469873. September 7, 2017. In
a reciprocal matter from New
Mexico, the D.C. Court of Appeals
imposed identical reciprocal discipline and disbarred Venie. In New
Mexico, Venie was found to have
counseled a client to bribe witnesses, converted client funds for
his own use, and improperly filed
a lien against his client's mother
to secure a legal fee.
Interim Suspensions Issued by
the District of Columbia Court
of Appeals
In re Jude Ezeala. Bar No. 988728.
September 18, 2017. Ezeala was
suspended on an interim basis
based upon discipline imposed
in Maryland.

Civilian Board of Contract Appeals,
Newland removed documents
from opposing counsel's table
without their knowledge or
consent and then failed to immediately return the documents
upon their request. Because of
Newland's actions, the full Civilian
Board of Contract Appeals held a
special telephone conference and
suspended the merits hearing in
the underlying case to hold a
hearing to address Newland's
conduct. Newland's conduct seriously interfered with the administration of justice. Rule 8.4(d).
Disciplinary Actions Taken
by the Board on Professional
Responsibility
Original Matters
In re Robert G. Broderick, a/k/a
Geoffrey Broderick. Bar No.
1004403. September 20, 2017.
The Board on Professional
Responsibility recommends
that the D.C. Court of Appeals
disbar Broderick by consent.

In re Micah Jared Smith. Bar No.
1002861. September 18, 2017.
Smith was suspended on an
interim basis based upon his conviction of a serious crime in the
Superior Court of the State of
Delaware.

In re Ricardo Vidal. Bar No. 486593.
September 20, 2017. The Board on
Professional Responsibility recommends that the D.C. Court of
Appeals disbar Vidal by consent.

Informal Admonitions Issued
by the Office of Disciplinary
Counsel

The Office of Disciplinary Counsel
compiled the foregoing summaries
of disciplinary actions. Informal
Admonitions issued by Disciplinary
Counsel and Reports and
Recommendations issued by the
Board on Professional Responsibility
are posted at www.dcattorneydiscipline.org. Most board recommendations as to discipline are not final
until considered by the court. Court
opinions are printed in the Atlantic
Reporter and also are available
online for decisions issued since
August 1998. To obtain a copy of
a recent slip opinion, visit www.
dccourts.gov/court-of-appeals/
opinions-memorandum-ofjudgments.

In re Jonathan T. Linde. Bar No.
479447. August 21, 2017.
Disciplinary Counsel issued Linde
an informal admonition for
engaging in the practice of law
in the District of Columbia while
his license was administratively
suspended for nonpayment
of attorney registration fees.
Rule 5.5(a).
In re James R. Newland Jr. Bar
No. 477804. August 28, 2017.
Disciplinary Counsel issued
Newland an informal admonition.
During a hearing before the

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DECEMBER 2017 43
http://www.dcattorneydiscipline.org http://www.dcattorneydiscipline.org https://www.dccourts.gov/court-of-appeals/opinions-memorandum-of-judgments https://www.dccourts.gov/court-of-appeals/opinions-memorandum-of-judgments http://www.dcbar.org
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Washington Lawyer - December 2017
