NEW ORLEANS (Louisiana Record) — St. Francisville attorney Kristy Emfinger Griffin has been allowed to permanently resign in lieu of discipline, and Bossier City attorney Rebecca Lynn Vishnefski has been reinstated following separate Dec. 3 Louisiana Supreme Court orders.
The high court issued its order in Griffin's matter follows formal charges filed by the office of disciplinary counsel, according to the court's two-page order. Griffin was charged with violating professional conduct rule, including those regarding competence, diligence, communication, fees, expediting litigation and bar admission and disciplinary matters.
"In addition the office of disciplinary counsel is conducting an investigation into three new complaints against [Griffin] which allege similar misconduct," the Supreme Court's order said.
Griffin asked the court that she be allowed to permanently resign in lieu of discipline. The office of disciplinary counsel concurred with her request. The court granted Griffin's request.
"It is further ordered that Kristy E. Griffin shall be permanently prohibited from practicing law in Louisiana or in any other jurisdiction in which she is admitted to the practice of law; shall be permanently prohibited from seeking readmission to the practice of law in this state or in any other jurisdiction in which she is admitted; and shall be permanently prohibited from seeking admission to the practice of law in any jurisdiction," the order said.
Griffin was admitted to the bar in Louisiana on April 11, 2003, according to her profile at the Louisiana State Bar Association's website. She has been ineligible to practice law in Louisiana since June for noncompliance with continuing legal education requirements and nonpayment of state bar and disciplinary dues, according to her state bar profile.
In an unrelated matter, the high court responded to Vishnefski's petition for transfer to active status by reinstating her, effective immediately, according to the Supreme Court's one-page order.
Vishnefski was admitted to the bar in Louisiana on Oct. 6, 2000, according to her profile at the Louisiana State Bar Association's website. No prior discipline was listed on his state bar profile. She was placed on inactive status in July 2012 due to disability or hardship, according to her profile.