Increased Sanction After Appeal And Remand Improper

A Texas attorney who had been found to engaged in misconduct in his handling of an appeal of a federal criminal conviction received a two-year suspension from an Evidentiary Panel. He appealed and was able to get one of the charges overturned. In response to the resulting remand, the Evidentiary Panel ordered disbarment.

The Texas Board of Disciplinary Appeals applied the principles of North Carolina v. Pearce to bar discipline and found no basis to impose the greater sanction after the remand. The board imposed a sanction of, in essence, time served for the misconduct.(Mike Frisch)