[J-63-2019] in the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania
[J-63-2019] IN THE SUPREME COURT OF PENNSYLVANIA SAYLOR, C.J., BAER, TODD, DONOHUE, DOUGHERTY, WECHT, MUNDY, JJ. OFFICE OF DISCIPLINARY COUNSEL, : No. 2587 Disciplinary Docket No. 3 : Petitioner : No. 151 DB 2017 : : Attorney Registration No. 32119 v. : : (Allegheny County) : CYNTHIA A. BALDWIN, : : ARGUED: September 10, 2019 Respondent : OPINION JUSTICE DONOHUE DECIDED: FEBRUARY 19, 2020 In this matter, we consider the request of the Petitioner, the Office of Disciplinary Counsel (“ODC”), to impose discipline in the form of a public censure on Respondent, Cynthia A. Baldwin (“Respondent”),1 in connection with her representation of Pennsylvania State University (“Penn State”) and three of its administrators during grand jury proceedings investigating matters relating to child abuse accusations against Gerald A. Sandusky (“Sandusky”), a former assistant football coach at Penn State. On November 21, 2017, the ODC filed a Petition for Discipline against the Respondent, 1 Respondent was admitted to the practice of law in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in 1980. She served as a judge on the Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County for sixteen years. In 2006, she was appointed by Governor Edward Rendell to fill a vacancy on this Court until January 2008. She has no record of prior disciplinary infractions. From February 15, 2010 until June 30, 2012, Respondent was Vice-President, General Counsel, and Chief Legal Officer for Penn State. charging her with violations of Rules 1.1, 1.6(a), 1.7(a) and 8.4(d) of the Pennsylvania Rules of Professional Conduct relating to her joint representation of Timothy Curley (“Curley”), Penn State’s Athletic Director, Gary Schultz (“Schultz”), Penn State’s former Senior Vice-President for Finance and Business, and Graham Spanier (“Spanier”), Penn State’s president (collectively “Individual Clients”) as well as Penn State (collectively with Individual Clients, the “Clients”).
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