Iowa Supreme Court Board of Professional Ethics & Conduct v. Plumb

NEUMAN, Justice.

This is an appeal by the board of professional ethics and conduct from a grievance commission decision that dismissed four out of five charges lodged against respondent attorney, Van M. Plumb. On the remaining charge — threatening criminal prosecution to gain an advantage in a civil matter — the commission found sufficient proof and recommended a public reprimand. The board now argues on appeal that the record also establishes that Plumb secretly recorded a conversation with another attorney in violation of DR 1-102(A)(4), an ethical breach it believes warrants a stiffer…