A judge on Monday disbarred Hunter Biden in Connecticut for violating the state’s rules governing attorney conduct. The decision followed complaints tied to the federal gun and tax cases in which Biden was convicted before being pardoned last year by his father, former President Joe Biden.
Under an agreement with the state office that oversees lawyer discipline, Biden consented to disbarment and acknowledged attorney misconduct, while stopping short of admitting to any criminal wrongdoing. He was also disbarred in Washington, D.C., in May.
Biden did not speak during the proceeding. He and his attorney, Ross Garber, appeared by video for a virtual hearing before Judge Trial Referee Patrick L. Carroll III in Waterbury.
Last year, a federal court in Delaware convicted Biden of three felonies related to the purchase of a gun in 2018. Prosecutors said he lied on a federal form by stating he was not illegally using or addicted to drugs.
He had also been scheduled to go to trial in September 2024 in California, where prosecutors accused him of failing to pay at least $1.4 million in federal taxes. Instead, he agreed to plead guilty to misdemeanor and felony charges shortly before jury selection was set to begin.
In ordering disbarment, the Connecticut judge concluded that Biden violated multiple ethical rules, including conduct involving “dishonesty, fraud, deceit or misrepresentation.” Court records show Biden admitted to some, but not all, of the alleged misconduct. The judge also referenced the Washington disbarment.
During Monday’s hearing, Paul Dorsey — one of two people who filed complaints about the former president’s son — said he opposed the agreement because Biden did not admit to committing crimes. Leanne Larson, an attorney with the Office of Chief Disciplinary Counsel, pointed to the pardon.
Biden was admitted to the Connecticut bar in 1997, one year after graduating from Yale Law School.
