Lawyer serves time
By Kathy McCarty
Staff Writer
PRESQUE ISLE — The Board of Overseers of the Bar has indicated a local lawyer, who recently served eight days in jail for nonpayment of taxes since 2003, has also been banned from practicing law for a month.
A ruling in June by the Maine Supreme Judicial Court directed Alan Harding, 58, of Presque Isle — who pled guilty to not filing and paying nearly $100,000 in state income taxes over a six-year period, through 2009 — to serve just over a week in jail. Harding was sentenced to serve 10 days of a 120-day jail sentence in the Aroostook County Jail in Houlton but was released two days early for “good time,” with Harding serving his time in December.
Since then, Harding has been ordered to serve 30 days of a six-month suspension of his license to practice law. That sentence began Dec. 22, 2011, and concludes Jan. 21, 2012.
Harding paid all back taxes prior to sentencing last year.
The Board of Overseers investigated five complaints against Harding, including the nonpayment of taxes. The Board also investigated reports that Harding neglected or mishandled cases for three clients — one involved a property owner’s lawsuit with her town over backup of sewage in 2004, a second involved handling of a bankruptcy case and a third pertained to how he handled a personal injury case.
Findings filed by Maine Supreme Judicial Court Associate Justice Joseph Jabar found Harding guilty of neglect and failure to respond to each case in a timely manner.
A fourth complaint involved a Presque Isle physician who’d hired Harding to represent her in a dispute with a local hospital. Without consulting with his client, Harding reportedly offered his services as a mediator to resolve the case. According to the code of conduct that governs lawyers, Harding’s handling of this matter was determined to be a conflict of interest.
Harding, in addition to time served and suspended work time, will have to inform clients of his suspension, his office will be supervised for one year, he’s required to take six hours of classes on law practice management and he will pay a $500 fine.
