Disciplinary Proceedings Against Schuh
2007 WI 43, 300 Wis.2d 149, 730 N.W.2d 152 (2007)
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ATTORNEY disciplinary
proceeding. Attorney's license
revoked.
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¶1 PER CURIAM. We review a
stipulation filed by the Office of Lawyer
Regulation (OLR) and Attorney Arthur L.
Schuh, Jr., pursuant to SCR 22.12
requesting this court to revoke Attorney
Schuh's license to practice law in
Wisconsin due to his professional
misconduct, effective July 27, 2006, the
date of the summary suspension of Attorney
Schuh's license. Attorney Schuh's
misconduct consisted of committing criminal
acts, conspiring to distribute a controlled
substance and knowingly possessing a
firearm in furtherance of a drug
trafficking crime, that reflect adversely
on his honesty, trustworthiness and fitness
as a lawyer, in violation of SCR 20:8.4(b).
¶2 Having independently reviewed the
matter, we approve the SCR 22.12
stipulation and adopt its stipulated facts
and conclusions of law. We agree that the
serious nature of Attorney Schuh's
professional misconduct requires the
revocation of his license to practice law
in this state. We also agree to the
parties' request that the revocation be
made effective on the date of the summary
suspension of Attorney Schuh's license.
¶3 Attorney Schuh was admitted to the
practice of law in Wisconsin in 1982. He
previously practiced in the Appleton area.
Prior to the summary suspension of his
license due to his criminal convictions, he
had not been subject to professional
discipline.
¶4 On April 3, 2006, pursuant to a
plea agreement, Attorney Schuh pled guilty
to two criminal counts in the United States
District Court for the Eastern District of
Wisconsin. In Count 1, Attorney Schuh pled
guilty to conspiring to distribute a
controlled substance, 500 grams or more of
a mixture containing cocaine, in violation
of Title 21, United States Code, Sections
841(a)(1) and (b)(1)(B), and 846. In Count
2, Attorney Schuh pled guilty to knowingly
possessing a firearm in furtherance of the
drug trafficking crime, in violation of
Title 18, United States Code, Section 924(c)
(1)(A)(i). According to the plea
agreement, which the parties stipulate to
including in the record of this proceeding,
from 2000 to 2003 Attorney Schuh routinely
obtained one to three ounces of cocaine
from a supplier, used some of it for
personal consumption, and distributed the
rest to friends and associates.
¶5 On July 13, 2006, the federal
district court sentenced Attorney Schuh to
a total of 123 months of imprisonment, to
be followed by four years of supervised
release. The court also ordered Attorney
Schuh to pay a $2000 fine and to forfeit
his ownership interest in a motorcycle and
a cabin in Pine River, Wisconsin.
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¶6 On July 27, 2006, this court
summarily suspended Attorney Schuh's
license to practice law in this state
pursuant to SCR 22.20 and based on his
federal criminal convictions.
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¶7 In the SCR 22.12 stipulation,
Attorney Schuh agrees that his criminal
acts of conspiring to distribute cocaine
and knowingly possessing a firearm in
furtherance of that drug trafficking crime
reflect adversely on his honesty,
trustworthiness and fitness as a lawyer,
and constitute a violation of SCR 20:8.4
(b). On the basis of that violation,
Attorney Schuh and the OLR jointly request
that the court revoke his license to
practice law in Wisconsin, effective as of
July 27, 2006.
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¶8 The stipulation notes that Attorney
Schuh's misconduct is aggravated by the
willful nature of his violations of the law
and the damage his criminal acts have done
to the perception of lawyers and the legal
system in this state. On the mitigating
side, the stipulation notes that Attorney
Schuh does not have a prior disciplinary
history and the OLR has no information that
Attorney Schuh failed to represent his
clients diligently. Moreover, Attorney
Schuh has experienced significant
consequences including a prison term of ten
years and three months, which is close to
the mandatory minimum total of ten years
required for the two federal offenses.
¶9 The stipulation properly states
that Attorney Schuh understands the
misconduct allegations against him, the
ramifications of the stipulated level of
discipline, his right to contest the
matter, and his right to consult with
counsel. Further, Attorney Schuh verifies
that he is entering the stipulation
knowingly and voluntarily.
¶10 Finally, the stipulation contains
several requests and statements by Attorney
Schuh. He requests the court to take note
of his assertions that he did not engage in
selling drugs for profit and distributed
drugs to a limited number of acquaintances
in connection with his own use of drugs.
He also asserts that he responsibly
transferred his client files to other
attorneys prior to his conviction. The
stipulation states that Attorney Schuh
accepts responsibility and
expresses "heartfelt remorse" for his
actions.
¶11 After independently considering
this matter, we accept the SCR 22.12
stipulation and its joint request for the
revocation of Attorney Schuh's license to
practice law in this state. Whether or not
Attorney Schuh sold the cocaine for profit
or simply distributed it to his friends and
associates, his actions constitute serious
criminal offenses and violations of his
obligations as an attorney, and require the
revocation of his license to practice law
in Wisconsin. Nonetheless, as we have done
in similar cases, we accept the
stipulation's request that the revocation
be deemed to have commenced on July 27,
2006, when this court summarily suspended
Attorney Schuh's license due to his
criminal convictions.
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¶12 Because Attorney Schuh has
stipulated to the revocation of his
license, eliminating the need for the
appointment of a referee, and because the
OLR has not requested the imposition of
costs, we do not assess the costs of this
disciplinary proceeding against Attorney
Schuh.
¶13 IT IS ORDERED that the license of
Arthur L. Schuh, Jr., to practice law in
Wisconsin is revoked, effective as of July
27, 2006.
¶14 IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that if he
has not already done so, Attorney Schuh
shall comply with the requirements of SCR
22.26 pertaining to the duties of a person
whose license to practice law in Wisconsin
has been revoked.
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