On Thursday, September 24, 2024, the Director of the Office of Lawyers Professional Responsibility filed a petition with the Minnesota Supreme Court seeking disciplinary action against attorney Zaylore S. Stout.
The case is entitled “In the Matter of Zaylore S. Stout.”
The charges cited Minnesota Rules of Professional Conduct 1.3, 1.4(a), 1.4(a)(3), 4.1, (3)(4), 1.15(c)(4), 1.16(d), 8.1(b), and 8.4(c).
The petition outlines three separate counts of misconduct related to Stout’s representation of two clients – the Metropolitan Council and QUEERSPACE Collective. In the first count, Stout allegedly failed to diligently and promptly complete an employment investigation for the Met Council that was commissioned in August 2021. The petition states Stout missed numerous deadlines over nearly a year for submitting the final report. It also accuses Stout of failing to keep the client informed about the status and missing deadlines.
In the second count, the petition claims Stout falsely told the Board of Directors for client QUEERSPACE Collective that an investigation had been completed when it had not. Stout then allegedly repeatedly missed deadlines from November 2023 to January 2024 for providing the promised final report to the client. This included failing to respond to the client’s attorney’s requests for status updates.
The third count centers on Stout’s failure to cooperate with the Office of Lawyers Professional Responsibility’s investigation into the complaints. The petition states the Director sent Stout multiple letters from April to May 2024 requesting a response and documents but received no reply. Stout also allegedly did not file an answer to formal charges of misconduct sent on July 31, 2024, as required.
The petition further notes Stout has a prior disciplinary history, with a public reprimand in 2022 and an admonition in 2019. In requesting disciplinary action, the Director argues Stout’s conduct violated various Minnesota Rules of Professional Conduct regarding diligence, communication with clients, honesty, and cooperation during a disciplinary investigation.
The petition states:
“WHEREFORE, the Director respectfully prays for an order of this Court suspending respondent or imposing otherwise appropriate discipline, awarding costs.”
According to avvo.com, Mr. Stout is an employment & labor attorney in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He attended the University of St Thomas Law School. He acquired his law license in Minnesota in 2012.
A copy of the original filing can be found here.
