Supreme Court disciplines 25 attorneys

The Florida Bar, the state’s guardian for the integrity of the legal profession, announced the Florida Supreme Court in recent court orders disciplined 25 attorneys, disbarring eight, suspending 15 and publicly reprimanding two.

Two attorneys received more than one form of discipline. One was placed on probation and another was ordered to pay restitution.

 

Marlene Garcia of St. Augustine was suspended for one year.

 

As an official arm of the Florida Supreme Court, The Florida Bar and its Department of Lawyer Regulation are charged with administering a statewide disciplinary system to enforce Supreme Court rules of professional conduct for the 96,000-plus lawyers admitted to practice law in Florida.

 

Case files are posted to attorneys’ individual Florida Bar profiles and may be reviewed at and/or downloaded from The Florida Bar’s website, floridabar.org.

 

Court orders are not final until time expires to file a rehearing motion and, if filed, determined. The filing of such a motion does not alter the effective date of the discipline.

 

Disbarred lawyers may not re-apply for admission for five years. They are required to go through an extensive process that rejects many who apply. It includes a rigorous background check and retaking the bar exam.

 

Historically, less than five percent of disbarred lawyers seek readmission.

 

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Supreme Court disciplines 25 attorneys