Opinion
Supreme Court No. SB-07-0183-D
January 8, 2008
Disciplinary Commission No. 06-1302.
JUDGMENT AND ORDER
This matter having come on for hearing before the Disciplinary Commission of the Supreme Court of Arizona, it having duly rendered its decision, there having been no discretionary review and sua sponte review having been declined by the Court,
IT IS ORDERED, ADJUDGED AND DECREED that ANDREW R. PROPER, a member of the State Bar of Arizona, is hereby suspended from the practice of law for a period of ninety (90) days, effective thirty (30) days from the date of this judgment and order, for conduct in violation of his duties and obligations as a lawyer, as disclosed in the Disciplinary Commission Report.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that ANDREW R. PROPER shall be placed on probation for a period of two (2) years upon reinstatement. The terms of probation are as follows:
1) Within thirty (30) days from the date of reinstatement, Respondent shall contact the Member Assistance Program (MAP) director and submit to an assessment. Respondent shall thereafter, enter into a probation contract based upon the recommendation of the MAP director or designee, and its terms shall be incorporated herein by reference.
2) Respondent shall refrain from engaging in any conduct that would violate the Rules of Professional Conduct and other rules of the Supreme Court of Arizona.
3) In the event that Respondent fails to comply with any of the foregoing conditions, and the State Bar receives information to that effect, bar counsel shall file with the Hearing Officer a Notice of Non-Compliance, pursuant to Rule 60(a)5, Ariz.R.Sup.Ct. The Hearing Officer shall conduct a hearing within thirty (30) days after receipt of said notice, to determine whether the terms of probation have been violated and if an additional sanction should be imposed. In the event there is an allegation that any of these terms have been violated, the burden of proof shall be on the State Bar of Arizona to prove non-compliance by clear and convincing evidence.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that Respondent shall comply with all the provisions of Rule 72, Rules of the Supreme Court of Arizona, including, but not limited to, Rule 72(a), which requires that Respondent notify all of his clients, within ten (10) days from the date hereof, of his inability to represent them and that he should promptly inform this Court of his compliance with this Order as provided in Rule 72(e).
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that Respondent shall comply with all rule provisions regarding reinstatement proceedings.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that pursuant to Rule 60(b), the State Bar of Arizona is granted judgment against ANDREW R. PROPER for costs and expenses of these proceedings in the amount of $1,945.46, together with interest at the legal rate from the date of this judgment.
DATED this ___ day of___, 2008.
TO:
Andrew R. Proper, Respondent (Certified Mail, Return Receipt and Regular Mail)
Ralph Adams, Respondent's Counsel
Amy K. Rehm, Bar Counsel
Richard N. Goldsmith, Hearing Officer
Nancy Swetnam, Acting Disciplinary Clerk (Cert. Copy)
Sandra Montoya, Lawyer Regulation Records Manager, State Bar of Arizona (Cert. Copy)
Cathy Catterson, Clerk, United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (Cert. Copy)
Richard Weare, Clerk, United States District Court, District of Arizona (Cert. Copy)
West Publishing Company (Jode Ottman)
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