Opinion
A20-0089
03-10-2022
IN RE Petition for DISCIPLINARY ACTION AGAINST Samuel A. MCCLOUD, a Minnesota Attorney, Registration No. 69693.
ORDER
On February 24, 2021, we suspended respondent Samuel A. McCloud for a minimum of 60 days, effective March 10, 2021. In re McCloud , 955 N.W.2d 270, 273 (Minn. 2021). We stated that by February 24, 2022, McCloud was required to file proof of his successful completion of the written examination required for admission to the practice of law by the State Board of Law Examiners on the subject of professional responsibility and that failure to do so would result in automatic suspension, as provided in Rule 18(e)(3), Rules on Lawyers Professional Responsibility (RLPR). McCloud , 955 N.W.2d at 283.
We conditionally reinstated McCloud on May 10, 2021. In re McCloud , 958 N.W.2d 917, 917 (Minn. 2021) (order). Our order reinstating McCloud repeated the requirement from our earlier order regarding the deadline for filing proof of successful completion of the professional-responsibility portion of the state bar examination. Id. We again stated that failure to do so would result in automatic suspension, pending successful completion of the examination, as provided in Rule 18(e)(3), RLPR. McCloud , 958 N.W.2d at 917.
Rule 18(e)(3), RLPR, provides that, unless waived by this court, a lawyer who has been suspended for 90 days or less "must, within one year from the date of the suspension order, successfully complete such written examination as may be required for admission to the practice of law by the State Board of Law Examiners on the subject of professional responsibility." The professional-responsibility examination referred to in Rule 18(e)(3) is the Multistate Professional Responsibility Examination (MPRE). See Rule 4.A(5), Rules for Admission to the Bar. "Except upon motion and for good cause shown, failure to successfully complete this examination shall result in automatic suspension of the lawyer effective one year after the date of the original suspension order." Rule 18(e)(3), RLPR.
We have routinely denied attorneys’ requests for additional time to provide proof of passing the MPRE and instead have suspended the attorney. In re Kennedy , 919 N.W.2d 332, 332–33 (Minn. 2018) (order) (denying motion and suspending attorney who was unable to take March 2018 MPRE due to health reasons and professional obligations and took but did not receive a passing score on the August 2018 MPRE); In re Nwaneri , 912 N.W.2d 882, 883–84 (Minn. 2018) (order) (denying motion and suspending attorney who sat for the MPRE twice and failed and claimed he was unable to adequately prepare for the second exam because of pressing family obligations that required him to travel out of the county and the demands of his practice); In re McCormick , 837 N.W.2d 493, 494–95 (Minn. 2013) (order) (denying motion and suspending an attorney who took and failed the MPRE and said he failed because he was ill on the day of the exam); In re Ruhland , 833 N.W.2d 401, 401 (Minn. 2013) (order) (denying motion for additional time to pass the MPRE when attorney waited too long to register and said caring for his aging parents contributed to his failure to timely register).
McCloud did not file proof of successful completion of the MPRE by February 24, 2022. Instead, he filed a motion seeking additional time to provide proof of successful completion of the MPRE. McCloud argues there is good cause for an extension of time to successfully complete the MPRE. McCloud contends he was unable to pass the MPRE by the court's deadline because of his underlying health issues, including hospitalizations, and the COVID-19 pandemic. McCloud states he has registered for the August 2022 MPRE.
The Director of the Office of Lawyers Professional Responsibility opposes McCloud's motion.
McCloud has provided no evidence he took any action in an attempt to comply with our order. During 2021, the MPRE was offered in March, August, and November. McCloud does not state he registered for any of these exams or that he requested but was denied an accommodation due to his increased risk to COVID-19. In re Kaminsky , 952 N.W.2d 915, 915–16 (Minn. 2021) (order) (denying motion for additional time to pass the MPRE and suspending attorney when he claimed he took but did not pass the MPRE because it was administered on a computer and he was unable to properly operate the computer due to a physical condition but he never requested a special accommodation). McCloud has indicated he was hospitalized at various times after his suspension, but he does not claim these hospitalizations or any of his health issues impacted his practice of law. And he has not registered for the next MPRE, which will be offered in March 2022. McCloud has not established good cause for his failure to successfully complete the MPRE.
Based upon all the files, records, and proceedings herein,
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED THAT:
1. The motion of respondent Samuel A. McCloud to extend the time to successfully complete the professional-responsibility portion of the state bar examination is denied.
2. Respondent's conditional reinstatement is revoked and he is indefinitely suspended, effective 14 days from the date of this order.
3. Respondent shall comply with Rule 26, RLPR (requiring notice of suspension to clients, opposing counsel, and tribunals).
4. Respondent may apply for reinstatement under Rule 18(f), RLPR, by filing with the Clerk of the Appellate Courts and serving upon the Director of the Office of Lawyers Professional Responsibility proof that he has successfully completed the written examination required for admission to the practice of law by the State Board of Law Examiners on the subject of professional responsibility.