Lee v. Virginia State Bar

Summary

The Supreme Court of Virginia affirmed a three-judge circuit court’s finding that Joseph Willis Lee, III, violated Virginia’s professional conduct rules by knowingly withholding exculpatory evidence from a criminal defendant. The court held that any alleged error in the Virginia State Bar subcommittee’s certification process was harmless and rejected Lee’s argument that statements by the criminal trial judge made the disciplinary evidence insufficient.

Holdings

1. Any error in the subcommittee's consideration of information relevant to its reasonable belief that misconduct had occurred was harmless because the circuit court conducted a fair de novo misconduct proceeding, the alleged error was not repeated there, and the circuit court independently found the violation by clear and convincing evidence.
2. The criminal trial judge's statements did not constitute irrefutable proof of Lee's innocence or make the disciplinary evidence legally insufficient. The circuit court acted within its factfinding discretion in finding by clear and convincing evidence that Lee knowingly withheld exculpatory evidence in violation of Disciplinary Rule 3.8(d).

Questions Presented

1. Whether alleged improper disclosure of Lee's prior disciplinary action to the Virginia State Bar subcommittee invalidated the subcommittee's certification and required dismissal of the disciplinary charge.
2. Whether the evidence was legally insufficient to support the circuit court's finding that Lee violated Disciplinary Rule 3.8(d) because the criminal trial judge had made statements suggesting that Lee had not acted purposefully or committed an ethical violation.

Disposition

affirmed