The mighty are falling this spring. The list of recent actions by the Disciplinary Board of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court includes an unusual number of big names. The recently disciplined include the former attorney general of the commonwealth, a former Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas judge, two former Philadelphia Municipal Court judges, a former Centre County district attorney, and a former aide to retired Congressman Bob Brady.

The biggest name does not come as any surprise, former Pennsylvania Attorney General Kathleen Kane was convicted in August 2016 of perjury, false swearing, obstructing administration of law, conspiracy to obstruct administration of law, official oppression and conspiracy to commit official oppression to deny rights. Kane filed her resignation from the practice of law in the commonwealth of Pennsylvania on March 12. Kane acknowledged her convictions were a per se ground for discipline and that she could not successfully defend the disciplinary charges against her. The attached petition for discipline asserted Kane violated Pennsylvania Rule of Professional Conduct 8.4(b), which states that it is professional misconduct for a lawyer to commit a crime that reflects adversely on the lawyer’s honesty, trustworthiness or fitness as a lawyer in other respects, and Pennsylvania Rule of Disciplinary Enforcement 203(b)(1), pursuant to which the conviction of a crime is a ground for discipline.