In re Dominic G. Vorv


Notice: This opinion is subject to formal revision before publication in the Atlantic and Maryland Reporters. Users are requested to notify the Clerk of the Court of any formal errors so that corrections may be made before the bound volumes go to press. DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA COURT OF APPEALS No. 17-BG-1247 IN RE DOMINIC G. VORV, RESPONDENT. A Member of the Bar of the District of Columbia Court of Appeals (Bar Registration No. 470139) On Report and Recommendation of the Board on Professional Responsibility Ad Hoc Hearing Committee Approving Petition for Negotiated Discipline (DDN 314-14) (Decided: November 30, 2017) Before GLICKMAN and MCLEESE, Associate Judges, and STEADMAN, Senior Judge. PER CURIAM: This decision is non-precedential. Please refer to D.C. Bar R. XI, § 12.1 (d) governing the appropriate citation of this opinion. In this disciplinary matter, the District of Columbia Court of Appeals Board on Professional Responsibility Ad Hoc Hearing Committee (the Committee) 2 recommends approval of a petition for negotiated attorney discipline. The violations stem from respondent Dominic G. Vorv’s professional misconduct arising from acts or omissions during the course of his representation of one client in post-conviction and immigration proceedings. In brief, after the client had pleaded guilty and been convicted of burglary in the Circuit Court of Fairfax County, Virginia, the United States Department of Homeland Security instituted proceedings for his removal on the premise that he had been convicted of an “aggravated felony” as defined by the Immigration and Nationality Act, see 8 U.S.C. § 1101 (a)(43)(G). In attempting to forestall his client’s removal, respondent made several missteps that jeopardized his client’s rights. First, respondent petitioned the Virginia Circuit Court to vacate his client’s conviction and guilty plea based on the mistaken claim that the court had failed to advise his client about the potential immigration consequences of the conviction. Thereafter, without consulting his client, respondent dismissed the petition, conceded removability before the Immigration Court, and did not seek to challenge or delay his client’s deportation on any other ground. Ultimately, the client retained new counsel who successfully argued against removal on the ground that the burglary offense for which he had been convicted was not an “aggravated felony” within the meaning of the Immigration and Nationality Act. 3 Respondent acknowledged that he (1) failed to provide competent representation and serve his client with skill and care; (2) failed to explain a matter to the client; and (3) engaged in conduct that seriously interfered with the administration of justice, thereby violating Rules 1.1 (a) & (b), 1.4 (b) and 8.4 (d) of the District of Columbia Rules of Professional Conduct. In mitigation, the Committee considered the fact that respondent knowingly and voluntarily acknowledged the facts and misconduct and does not have a prior history of discipline. As a result, Disciplinary Counsel and respondent negotiated the imposition of discipline in the form of a thirty-day suspension, stayed, and one year of probation during which respondent must (1) contact the District of Columbia Bar’s Practice Management Advisory Service ...

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