NEW ORLEANS — Baton Rouge attorney Stephen J. Holliday, suspended by the state bar following a domestic abuse conviction, may be conditionally reinstated following a recommendation issued by a Louisiana Attorney Disciplinary Board (LADB) hearing committee.
"In terms of his honesty and fitness to practice law, [Holliday] testified that he 'lost his way' during a bad marriage," LADB Hearing Committee No. 15 said in its 11-page March 7 recommendation. "He believes that through public service, hard work and self-education, he has learned from his past mistakes. [Holliday] appeared to be apologetic, regretful, and remorseful during his testimony."
Among other conditions, Holliday would be required to continue his Judges and Lawyers Assistance Program (JLAP) diagnostic monitoring for a year after the date of his reinstatement, according to the recommendation.
The recommendation was signed March 6 by committee Chair John Smith and was issued the following day. Attorney member Laurie Marien and public member Vallan Corbett concurred in the recommendation.
Holliday was admitted to the bar in Louisiana on April 28, 1995, according to his profile at the Louisiana State Bar Association’s website. Holliday has been suspended since June 2016 when the state Supreme Court accepted a joint petition for consent discipline reached between Holliday and the office of disciplinary counsel. Holliday's suspension followed his conviction for domestic abuse battery the previous June.
Since his suspension, Holliday has worked as a paralegal for another Baton Rouge attorney and has taught construction law for about 10 semesters, according to the recommendation.
"He is currently teaching an Immigration Law course as well," the recommendation said. "He is committed to compliance with the JLAP program."
Holliday filed his petition for reinstatement in August 2018.
In a previous discipline, Holliday was suspended in June 2009 for three years over four counts of misconduct, including his September 2001 arrest for simple criminal damage to property and violating a restraining order, according to the state Supreme Court's attorney disciplinary proceeding at the time. That count involved Holliday's arrest after he allegedly fled from his then estranged wife's home, with his 2-year old daughter in the car, after he'd used a shovel to break the windows of his wife's boyfriend's truck. Police later arrested Holliday after a chase through a residential neighborhood, according to the 2009 Supreme disciplinary proceeding.