Attorney Grievance Commission v. Kobin
432 Md. 565
| Md. | 2013Background
- Respondent Jason A. Kobin, admitted in 1999, operated a multi-office law practice and contracted with Central Payroll Management (CPM) to handle payroll and tax withholdings.
- CPM attempted electronic withdrawals from Kobin’s operating account but experienced multiple reversals for insufficient funds; CPM ultimately was owed about $1,720 and terminated the relationship.
- Kobin did not maintain separate trust/IOLTA accounting for client funds or withholding taxes, commingled personal/business and client funds, and authorized a nonlawyer office manager (Donna Herr) to write trust-account checks without training or adequate supervision.
- Kobin failed to withhold and pay employee income taxes for 2010–2011 and failed timely to provide W-2s to employees; payroll checks were often late or bounced.
- He failed to maintain required trust-account records and did not produce records in discovery; he made false statements to Bar Counsel about the CPM balance and contested (partially sustained) an allegation about a bounced IOLTA check.
- The hearing judge found clear and convincing evidence of violations of multiple MLRPC rules and Maryland trust-account rules; the Court imposed disbarment (Per Curiam order May 2, 2013).
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Failure to hold withholding taxes in trust / pay payroll taxes | Kobin violated MLRPC 1.15 by not keeping withholding taxes in trust and failing to pay taxing authorities | Kobin blamed CPM and attributed failures to bookkeeping/operational issues | Court: Violations of MLRPC 1.15 (including 1.15(d)); failure to withhold/pay taxes proven; misconduct under 8.4(b),(c),(d) |
| Commingling and misuse of trust funds; recordkeeping violations | Kobin commingled client and personal funds, used trust funds for wages/expenses, and failed to keep required records (Md. Rule 16-606.1, 16-607, 16-609; BOP §10-306) | Kobin conceded accounting deficiencies but argued lack of intent or misunderstanding of rules | Court: Findings sustained; violations of MLRPC 1.15(a),(b), Maryland Rule 16-606.1/16-607/16-609, and BOP §10-306; misappropriation warrants severe sanction |
| Supervision of nonlawyer assistant (MLRPC 5.3) | Kobin failed to train/supervise Ms. Herr, ratified improper trust-account transactions, and delegated prohibited authority | Kobin claimed Ms. Herr "understood" restrictions and he occasionally checked balances | Court: Violations of MLRPC 5.3(a),(b),(c); Kobin responsible for conduct he ordered/ratified or failed to mitigate |
| False statements and discovery noncompliance (MLRPC 8.1) | Kobin made knowingly false statements to Bar Counsel about CPM payments and failed to produce requested trust-account records | Kobin disputed one finding about a bounced IOLTA check and contested characterization of CPM statements | Court: Held Kobin violated MLRPC 8.1(a) (misrepresentation about CPM) and 8.1(b) (failure to respond to lawful demand); one IOLTA-bounce finding sustained as exception but overall 8.1 violation stands |
| Mitigation and sanction | Bar sought severe sanction based on misappropriation and tax misconduct | Kobin offered depression and gambling addiction as mitigation but produced no corroborating expert/evidence tying condition to misconduct | Court: No sufficient mitigation; disbarment imposed as appropriate sanction for unmitigated misappropriation and related misconduct |
Key Cases Cited
- Attorney Grievance Comm’n v. Johnson, 409 Md. 470 (application of MLRPC 1.15 to withholding taxes)
- Attorney Grievance Comm’n v. Clark, 363 Md. 169 (State as "third person" and IOLTA trusts; misappropriation and prejudice to administration of justice)
- Attorney Grievance Comm’n v. Nussbaum, 401 Md. 612 (commingling and misuse of trust funds warrants disbarment)
- Attorney Grievance Comm’n v. Mininsohn, 380 Md. 536 (failure to withhold/pay taxes reflects adversely on honesty; 8.4 violations)
- Attorney Grievance Comm’n v. Vanderlinde, 364 Md. 376 (extremely high burden for mental-health mitigation in misappropriation cases)
- Attorney Grievance Comm’n v. Hayes, 367 Md. 504 (unmitigated misappropriation of client or third-party funds leads to disbarment)
- Attorney Grievance Comm’n v. Zuckerman, 403 Md. 695 (failure to instruct/supervise employees re: trust-account management violates MLRPC 5.3)