STATE OF MICHIGAN Attorney Discipline Board
GRIEVANCE ADMINISTRATOR, Attorney Grievance Commission,
Petitioner-Appellee, v ANDREW A. PATERSON, P 18690, Respondent-Appellant. /
Case No. 20-13-GA
2021-Mar-02
ORDER DENYING PETITION FOR INTERLOCUTORY REVIEW
Issued by the Attorney Discipline Board 333 W. Fort St., Ste. 1700, Detroit, MI
Respondent filed a petition for review seeking the Attorney Discipline Board’s interlocutory review of a hearing panel order, entered September 10, 2020, denying his motion to permit prehearing depositions. The Attorney Discipline Board has considered respondent’s request for interlocutory review, the Grievance Administrator’s response opposing respondent’s request, and respondent’s reply to the Grievance Administrator’s response, and is otherwise fully advised;
NOW THEREFORE, IT IS ORDERED that respondent’s petition for interlocutory review of the hearing panel’s order denying his motion to permit prehearing depositions is DENIED for the reason that respondent has not established good cause sufficient to order discovery depositions prior to the hearing in this matter. Respondent asserts that the requested depositions are necessary to show that the complainants conspired together to file a grievance against respondent. However, the complainants’ motives and such an alleged conspiracy are not at issue in these proceedings, and thus the requested depositions are not relevant. A Formal Complaint has been filed, and the issue now is whether respondent committed the misconduct alleged.
Furthermore, no abuse of discretion by the panel has been established, and the standard for invoking interlocutory review has not been met. See Grievance Administrator v Timothy A. Stoepker, 13-32-GA (ADB 2014) (“Respondent has fallen far short of showing that the panel’s ruling was erroneous, that the requests were in fact useful, or, even if they were, that the panel abused its discretion in deciding that they were not necessary to the efficient and fair disposition of this matter”).
ATTORNEY DISCIPLINE BOARD
DATED: March 2, 2021
By:
Jonathan E. Lauderbach, Chairperson
Board members Jonathan E. Lauderbach, Michael B. Rizik, Barbara Williams Forney, Dr. Linda Hotchkiss, Michael S. Hohauser, Peter A. Smit, and Linda M. Orlans concur in this decision. Board Member Karen D. O’Donoghue did not participate. Board Member Alan Gershel recused himself and did not participate.