Opinion
Supreme Court Case No. 23S-DI-127
02-23-2024
In the MATTER OF: Cecilia MONTERROSA, Respondent
Published Order Approving Statement of Circumstances and Conditional Agreement for Discipline
Pursuant to Indiana Admission and Discipline Rule 23(12.1)(b), the Indiana Supreme Court Disciplinary Commission and Respondent have submitted for approval a "Statement of Circumstances and Conditional Agreement for Discipline" stipulating agreed facts and proposed discipline as summarized below.
Stipulated Facts: "Client" hired Respondent to represent him in an immigration matter. In March 2018, Client and Respondent executed a waiver form set to expire in July 2018, and Client provided Respondent three MoneyGram orders to pay the fees associated with filing the waiver form. MoneyGram orders incur monthly service charges beginning one year after the date of purchase.
Respondent took no action to confirm the waiver form and money orders were received by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services ("USCIS") office. For whatever reason, Respondent’s mailing to the USCIS office was unsuccessful, and the United States Postal Service returned the undelivered mailing to Respondent in June 2020. In July 2020, Respondent re-sent the waiver form and MoneyGram orders to USCIS, without telling Client. In August 2020, USCIS issued a notice rejecting the waiver form as outdated and because the MoneyGram orders had expired. Respondent’s next documented attempt to communicate with Client was a letter sent in November 2020 asking Client to contact her. In March 2021, Respondent contacted Client seeking to collect an outstanding fee balance.
Violations: The parties agree that Respondent violated these Indiana Professional Conduct Rules prohibiting the following misconduct:
1.3: Failure to act with reasonable diligence and promptness.
1.4(a)(3): Failure to keep a client reasonably informed about the status of a matter.
Discipline: The parties propose the appropriate discipline is a public reprimand. The Court, having considered the submissions of the parties, now approves the agreed discipline and imposes a public reprimand for Respondent’s misconduct.
The costs of this proceeding are assessed against Respondent. Pursuant to the parties’ stipulation, the Court hereby orders Respondent to pay $266.68 by check made payable and transmitted to the Clerk of the Indiana Supreme Court. Upon receipt, the Clerk is directed to disburse those funds as follows: (1) $16.68, payable to the Commission as reimbursement for investigative expenses incurred; and (2) $250.00, payable to the Clerk for court costs. The expenses of the hearing officer will be submitted separately.
With the acceptance of this agreement, the hearing officer appointed in this case is discharged with the Court’s appreciation.
All Justices concur.