Another reason to practice criminal defense

Six years ago an applicant to the New York Bar omitted a job he held from his bar application. What result?

A Staten Island lawyer's bar admission has been revoked because he failed to disclose an ill-fated internship with the Richmond County District Attorney's Office.

Stephen M. Canino of Goldstein & Canino was admitted to the bar in 1998 but failed to state in his application that he worked in the prosecutor's office during 1992. The Appellate Division, Second Department, agreed with a special referee who heard the matter that Mr. Canino deliberately omitted the information to avoid prompting an affidavit from the district attorney's office that he thought would hurt his application.

The moral of the story is clear: Do not work for the DA. If you do, you might have your bar license revoked.

(Hat tip: David Giacalone - who might not appreciate my attempt at humor)

UPDATE: Again, via EthicalEsq., comes this overview of the moral character and fitness process. Everything I've read says that dealing with the State Bar is like dealing with the SEC - full disclosure baby.

Comments

[david giacalone]

In a world where no one should take himself too seriously, I always appreciate attempts at humor. Of course, I always prefer actual humor.

You know, this reminds me: when applying for the NYS Bar (a dozen years out of law school), I was really tempted to omit a 6-week job I had doing appellate criminal defense. Of course, my conscience made me put the job on my application and it resulted in the most perfunctory-but-neutral recommendation affidavit I've ever seen. It seems that the partner in question was even more worried about my likely explanation to the Fitness Committee than I was (and for good reasons, which shall remain undisclosed -- at least until my memoirs).

[sd]

In this case he was hiding a serious crime he comited while working for the DA.

[Kelly Winston]

Maybe he should not have LIED on his application. I question Mr. Canino's integrity. Clearly, the legal world is no worse off for his loss.