On Friday, April 5, 2024, the District of Columbia Board of Professional Responsibility released its report recommending a two-year suspension for attorney Kristopher Twomey. The report details misconduct charges brought against Twomey by Disciplinary Counsel related to his representation of two telecommunications companies, LTD Broadband, and Monster Broadband, that were seeking funding from the Federal Communications Commission’s Rural Digital Opportunity Fund program.
The case is entitled “In the Matter of Kristopher E. Twomey,” with case no. 23-BD-013.
The charges cited the District of Columbia Rules of Professional Conduct 1.3(c), 1.4(a) and (b), 4.1(a), and 8.4(c).
The report finds that Twomey violated D.C. Rules of Professional Conduct regarding promptness, communication with clients, dishonest statements to third parties, and dishonesty. Specifically, Twomey is found to have missed important deadlines for his clients to obtain eligible telecommunications carrier designations from state regulatory agencies, which were required to receive RDOF funding. He is also found to have provided inaccurate information to co-counsel and his clients about the status of applications in various states.
Most seriously, Twomey is determined to have knowingly made false statements and misrepresented facts regarding LTD Broadband’s application in California. He provided altered documentation to the co-counsel showing a submission date several months earlier than actually occurred. This false information was then included in a petition to the FCC requesting an extension of the application deadline. The report concludes Twomey manufactured this evidence in an attempt to cover up his failure to meet the deadline.
In its analysis, the committee found Twomey violated his duty to keep clients reasonably informed about their matters and promptly comply with information requests. He provided inaccurate status updates that prevented clients from making fully informed decisions about hiring alternative counsel. The committee also determined Twomey violated his duty not to make false statements to third parties like regulatory agencies and co-counsel.
While Monster Broadband was ultimately able to obtain its designations with new counsel, LTD Broadband suffered prejudice as the FCC denied its request for deadline relief based on a lack of demonstrated good faith effort. Both companies expressed damage to their view of lawyers resulting from Twomey’s conduct. However, the report notes Twomey has no prior disciplinary history and conducted himself professionally during the hearing.
In recommending a two-year suspension, the committee compared Twomey’s misconduct to past cases involving dishonesty intended to conceal earlier deficiencies. It found his actions most similar to cases resulting in suspensions of 18 months to three years. The suspension takes into account aggravating factors like multiple rule violations and prejudice suffered while noting an absence of acknowledged wrongdoing by Twomey.
The recommendation states:
“For the foregoing reasons, the Hering Committee finds that Mr. Twomey violated District of Columbia Rules of Professional Conduct 1.3(c), 1.4(a) and (b), 4.1(a), and 8.4(c) and recommends that he be suspended from the practice of law for two years.”
According to avvo.com, Mr. Twomey is an attorney in Washington, DC. He acquired his law license in D.C. in 2008.
A copy of the original filing can be found here.
