New attorney ethics investigations, formal complaints and disciplinary sanctions all fell significantly in 2021, according to a new report by the New Jersey Office of Attorney Ethics.

“The lingering effects of the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, combined with significant staffing changes in the OAE, negatively impacted the OAE’s ability to process its cases,” OAE Director Charles Centinaro said in the agency’s 2021 Attorney Disciplinary System Report, noting that “time goal compliance decreased and the age of investigations and hearings increased.”