On September 26, 2023, the Supreme Court of Iowa issued an order suspending 13 attorneys from practice for failing to meet their continuing legal education (CLE) requirements.
The case is entitled “In the Matter of Enforcement of Iowa Court Rule 41.4 (CLE),” and was brought by the Commission on Continuing Legal Education.
Rule 41.4 requires all actively licensed attorneys in Iowa to complete at least 15 hours of accredited CLE courses each year, including at least 1 hour of ethics. The Commission is tasked with tracking compliance and notifying attorneys who fail to submit their annual reports.
According to the Court order, the Commission worked diligently to contact all delinquent attorneys by mail and other means to inform them of their noncompliance and provide an opportunity to rectify the situation before suspensions were ordered.
The names of the 13 attorneys delinquent in filing their 2023 CLE reports are as follows:
Ballard, Shalanda
Bertelli, Monty Ray
Boe, Michelle Alexandra
Diment, Barbara J.
Dixon, Catherine Therese
Donohue, Michael Patrick
Fausett, Lora Ann Matthews
Kelsey Jr., Keith Jerome
Larson, Paul E.
Lautenbaugh, Scott Alan
Martin, Craig M.
Sears, Arick Reagan
Ward, James Patrick
The court found that the above-listed attorneys did not fully comply with the Commission’s requests or submit any requests for hearings on their cases.
As a result, the 13 attorneys spanning locations from Nebraska to Florida had their licenses to practice law in Iowa suspended effective immediately. To be reinstated, each attorney must submit proof of completing their delinquent CLE requirements within 30 days as well as pay a $250 reinstatement fee. The suspensions will remain in place until the Commission certifies each lawyer has become compliant and the Court approves their reinstatement.
A copy of the original filing can be found here.
