--- title: In THE MATTER OF JAMES HOWARD SINNOTT (Two Cases) collection: opinions id: S25Y0420 cite_as: In THE MATTER OF JAMES HOWARD SINNOTT (Two Cases), 321 Ga. 259 (2025) canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/opinions/S25Y0420 md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/opinions/S25Y0420.md text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/opinions/S25Y0420/text source_url: https://www.courtlistener.com/opinion/10680501/in-the-matter-of-james-howard-sinnott-two-cases/ date: 2025-03-04 status: published corpus_version: opinions-2026-09-14 license: Public record of the Supreme Court of Georgia, via CourtListener and the court's own website; see about.md publisher: Georgia Commons, an independent project of Georgia Civic Data. Not the State of Georgia. Not legal advice. up: https://georgiacommons.org/opinions/2025.md previous: https://georgiacommons.org/opinions/S25Y0220.md next: https://georgiacommons.org/opinions/S24A1234.md index: https://georgiacommons.org/opinions/index.md omitted: opinion extras omitted_chars: 1456 omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/opinions/S25Y0420.md?full=1 docket: S25Y0420, S25Y0532 citation: 321 Ga. 259 court: Supreme Court of Georgia case_type: bar discipline authoring_justice: Per Curiam disposition: Interim suspension imposed; related petition dismissed as moot vote: All the Justices concur word_count: 543 date_filed_source: courtlistener record_source: courtlistener also_known_as: - CourtListener cluster 10349392 legal_areas: - professional discipline - criminal law upstream_id: "10680501" summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5 --- # In THE MATTER OF JAMES HOWARD SINNOTT (Two Cases) Supreme Court of Georgia, docket S25Y0420, S25Y0532, filed 2025-03-04, 321 Ga. 259. ## Opinion 321 Ga. 259 FINAL COPY S25Y0420, S25Y0532. IN THE MATTER OF JAMES HOWARD SINNOTT (two cases). PER CURIAM. These disciplinary matters concern James Sinnott (State Bar No. 649120), who was convicted in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia of one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States; one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud; 15 counts of aiding and assisting the filing of false tax returns; and five counts of subscribing to false tax returns. Case No. S25Y0532 is before the Court on the report and recommendation of Special Master Christopher S. Brasher, who was appointed pursuant to Bar Rule 4-106 (a)1 to recommend the appropriate 1 Bar Rule 4-106 (a) provides: Upon receipt of information or evidence that a conviction for any felony or misdemeanor involving moral turpitude has been entered against a lawyer, the Clerk of the State Disciplinary Boards shall immediately assign the matter a State Disciplinary Board docket number. The Office of the General Counsel shall petition the Supreme Court of Georgia for the appointment of a Special Master to conduct a show cause hearing. discipline for Sinnott’s apparent violation of Rule 8.4 (a) (2) of the Georgia Rules of Professional Conduct found in Bar Rule 4-102 (d).2 Following an evidentiary hearing, the Special Master issued his report and recommendation, in which he noted that Sinnott’s direct appeal of his convictions remains pending and recommended that Sinnott, who has been a member of the Bar since 1999, be suspended from the practice of law until his direct appeal is resolved. Neither Sinnott nor the State Bar has filed exceptions to the Special Master’s report and recommendation. Having reviewed the record, we agree with the Special Master’s recommended discipline. See In the Matter of Robertson, 319 Ga. 531 (904 SE2d 502) (2024) (imposing voluntary suspension of license pending outcome of appeal of criminal conviction). See also In the Matter of Otuonye, 302 Ga. 374 (806 SE2d 524) (2017) (same). We also dismiss as moot Case No. S25Y0420, in which Sinnott filed directly in this Court a petition for voluntary discipline seeking the 2 Rule 8.4 (a) (2) provides that it shall be a violation of the Georgia Rules of Professional Conduct for a lawyer to be convicted of a felony. The maximum penalty for a violation of Rule 8.4 (a) (2) is disbarment. same discipline recommended by the Special Master. Accordingly, it is hereby ordered that James Sinnott be suspended from the practice of law in this State pending the outcome of his direct appeal and until further order of this Court. Sinnott is ordered to notify the State Bar’s Office of General Counsel in writing within ten days of the final disposition of his direct appeal, and he is reminded of his duties pursuant to Bar Rule 4-219 (b). Interim suspension in Case No. S25Y0532. Petition dismissed as moot in Case No. S25Y0420. All the Justices concur. Decided March 4, 2025. Suspension. Paula J. Frederick, General Counsel State Bar, Russell D. Willard, General Counsel State Bar Designate, William D. NeSmith III, Deputy General Counsel State Bar, William V. Hearnburg, Jr., Andreea N. Morrison, Assistant General Counsel State Bar, for State Bar of Georgia. Garland Samuel & Loeb, Kristen W. Novay, for Sinnott. ## Summaries written by Georgia Commons The following was written by claude-sonnet-5 from the opinion above and is not part of the court's opinion. Quote the opinion, not the summary. The Supreme Court of Georgia suspended attorney James Sinnott from practicing law after his federal criminal conviction, with the suspension to last until his direct appeal is resolved. ### Plain-language summary James Sinnott, a Georgia lawyer admitted to the bar since 1999, was convicted in federal court in the Northern District of Georgia of conspiracy to defraud the United States, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, and multiple counts of filing or subscribing false tax returns. Because a felony conviction violates the rules that govern Georgia lawyers, a special master held a hearing to decide what discipline Sinnott should face while his appeal of that conviction is still pending. The special master recommended that Sinnott be suspended from practicing law until his direct appeal is resolved, rather than being disbarred outright at this stage. Neither Sinnott nor the State Bar objected to that recommendation. The Supreme Court of Georgia agreed and ordered the suspension, also dismissing as unnecessary a separate petition Sinnott had filed on his own seeking the same outcome. ### Holding, as summarized A lawyer convicted of a felony violates Georgia's rules of professional conduct, and when a direct appeal of that conviction is still pending, the appropriate discipline is suspension from practicing law until the appeal is resolved, rather than immediate disbarment. ### Disposition Interim suspension imposed; related petition dismissed as moot. All the Justices concur. ### Why it matters Sinnott cannot practice law in Georgia while his federal appeal is pending, which affects his clients and law practice. The ruling also confirms how Georgia handles lawyers convicted of serious crimes: suspension pending appeal, with disbarment still possible depending on the appeal's outcome. > The summarized reasoning, checked quotes, suggested questions, and the CourtListener opinion records (1,456 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/opinions/S25Y0420.md?full=1