This is in response to the Sun Journal editorial July 2 that stated, "The union's chastisement of LePage for his decision to hire out of New York ... is — well — pure rhetoric. Right?"
Well — no. And the fact the gentleman is from New York may not be the problem, precisely, either.
He is a lawyer. To practice law in Maine you have to be admitted to do so here, either by a court or agency.
The governor's counsel is not so admitted. He is not authorized to practice law here at all. He has not passed the Maine bar exam nor been admitted to practice temporarily under various options, usually requiring association with Maine counsel. (So that the out-of-state attorney gets the Maine law right; a small but important point.)
Given this impediment, the New York lawyer could be a behind-the-scenes adviser at most.
Unfortunately, the governor's choice, far from playing a background role, has been front and center, touting not only that he is here as the governor's attorney but regularly mentioning that New York law firm he hails from, leaving no doubt exactly what role he's here to play.
In Maine, however, that activity appears to constitute the unauthorized practice of law — a crime. 4 MRS sec. 807.
Maybe that's what all the "rhetoric" is about.
Laurie Gibson, Esq., Durham
Editor's note: According to Chief Counsel Dan Billings, the governor's office worked closely with the Office of the Attorney General to clearly define the "practice of law for purposes of Mr. (Louis) DiLorenzo's services." The consulting agreement between the governor and DiLorenzo, signed April 22, "makes clear that he is not a Maine attorney and cannot practice law in this jurisdiction," according to Billings. DiLorenzo is legally authorized to provide services, including reviewing collective bargaining agreements and developing negotiation strategies and a communication plan, under the agreement vetted by the AG's Office.
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Sounds to me like the
Sounds to me like the agreement was carefully drasfted to ensure Maine law was upheld....get your panties out of a bunch and live with it folks...or spend YOUR money to challenge the legality - I dare you!
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Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.Kudo's for the Lt least
Kudo's for the Lt least asking the question posed by the ditorial, and shame on those who simply do not like the answer thus attack even more. But isn't it kind of bizarre that another attorney would make this kind of allegations? You think she would know better.....
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Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.Does the LSJ
Print a disclaimer anytime they refer to the Governor's 'adopted' Jamaican son that he really isn't adopted???
IF BS were music Da Guv would be a Brass Band........
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Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.Agreed
Whole heartedly agree Ms Gibson, and to the Sun Journal, your disclaimer is a joke. It sounds like you have simply taken the BS slung by LePage's PR office as gospel.
"provide services, including reviewing collective bargaining agreements and developing negotiation strategies and a communication plan, under the agreement vetted by the AG's Office." Sounds like being a practicing law to me,,,,,
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Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.BS?
The editor's note was not a disclaimer. It was a direct response to Ms. Gibson's suggestion that perhaps there was a violation of Maine statute. Since she raised the question, we felt obliged to answer it. Mr. Billings explained the attorney's duties, and provided a copy of the signed agreement that was approved by the Attorney General's Office. So, no BS slung there. Just a legal document.
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Would you like to respond? Login or create a new account. You'll need to verify your account before you can respond.Thank you
Thank's "Staff" rarely do members of the papers pay c;lose enough attention, and actually care enough to answer I appreciate it!
My next question, don;t you think the Sun should challenge that? Yes the AG says it's legal, but really. Giving legal advice, and getting paid for it? Sounds like he's "lawyering" to me! Just because the AG (appointed by LePage) says that what LePage is doing is ok, doesn't make it so!
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