No. 19-813

Loring Edwin Justice v. Board of Professional Responsibility of the Supreme Court of Tennessee

Lower Court: Tennessee
Docketed: 2019-12-27
Status: Denied
Type: Paid
Response Waived
Tags: 5th-amendment administrative-law attorney-discipline civil-rights due-process fifth-amendment professional-conduct quasi-criminal self-incrimination
Key Terms:
ERISA FifthAmendment DueProcess CriminalProcedure
Latest Conference: 2020-02-21
Question Presented (AI Summary)

Whether Tennessee violated the self-incrimination clause when it forced Justice to testify or suffer adverse inferences costing him his Tennessee law license

Question Presented (from Petition)

QUESTIONS PRESENTED 1. Justice, relying on Spevack v. Klein and McKune v. Lile, invoked his Fifth Amendment right in a Tennessee disbarment proceeding. Did Tennessee violate the self-incrimination clause when it forced Justice to testify or suffer adverse inferences costing him his Tennessee law license? 2. Tennessee acknowledges this Court requires attorney disciplinary proceedings to be quasicriminal but imposes civil law standards of proof for disbarring an attorney (e.g., preponderance) and administrative law standards for review on appeal (e.g., affirming factual findings based on a “scintilla or glimmer” of evidence). Tennessee’s attorney disciplinary system also combines all investigative and prosecutorial functions within the Tennessee Supreme Court — going so far as to allow the panel judging the accused attorney, to prosecute the accused. Does the structure of Tennessee’s disciplinary system violate the due process clause and In re Murchison, 349 U.S. 133 (1955) and In re Ruffalo, 390 U.S. 544, 551 (1968)? ii LIST OF PROCEEDINGS Supreme Court of Tennessee No. Board of Professional Responsibility, Appellee v. Loring Edwin Justice, Appellant. Date: July 2, 2019 Chancery Court for Knox County, Tennessee No. 184818-3 Board of Professional Responsibility, Plaintiff v. Loring Edwin Justice, Defendant. Date: May 31, 2017 Disciplinary District II of the Board of Professional Responsibility of the Supreme Court of Tennessee No. 2013-2254-2-WM In re: Loring Edwin Justice BPR # 19446, Respondent An Attorney Licensed to Practice Law in Tennessee (Knox County) Date: March 9, 2015

Docket Entries

2020-02-24
Petition DENIED.
2020-01-15
DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 2/21/2020.
2020-01-03
Waiver of right of respondent Board of Professional Responsibility of the Supreme Court of Tennessee to respond filed.
2019-12-18
Petition for a writ of certiorari filed. (Response due January 27, 2020)
2019-10-22
Application (19A434) granted by Justice Sotomayor extending the time to file until December 19, 2019.
2019-10-10
Application (19A434) to extend the time to file a petition for a writ of certiorari from October 20, 2019 to December 19, 2019, submitted to Justice Sotomayor.

Attorneys

Board of Professional Responsibility of the Supreme Court of Tennessee
Talmage Mims WattsOffice of the Tennessee Attorney General, Respondent
Talmage Mims WattsOffice of the Tennessee Attorney General, Respondent
Loring Justice
Linn Marie Guerrero-JusticeJustice Law Firm, Petitioner
Linn Marie Guerrero-JusticeJustice Law Firm, Petitioner