Convicted first son Hunter Biden’s license to practice law in the nation’s capital was suspended Tuesday, exactly two weeks after he was found guilty of lying about his drug use to obtain a firearm.
“The respondent is suspended immediately from the practice of law in the District of Columbia pending resolution of this matter,” the DC Court of Appeals ordered Tuesday.
Last week, the DC Bar’s Office of Disciplinary Counsel filed a notice seeking to suspend the 54-year-old’s law license following the June 11 conviction.
The DC Court of Appeals noted in its order that Hunter’s conviction amounted to “serious crimes” based on the bar association’s rules, which proscribe members from committing felonies or any offenses involving “false swearing, misrepresentation, [or] fraud,” among other breaches.
Up until the guilty verdict, Hunter — a graduate of the prestigious Yale Law School — had been seen as a member of the district bar in good standing.
Additionally, the appeals court called on the DC Bar’s Board on Professional Responsibility to “institute a formal proceeding to determine the nature of the offense and whether it involves moral turpitude.”
On Monday, Hunter’s legal team filed paperwork seeking a new trial after making a similar filing earlier this month only to yank it shortly thereafter without a clear explanation.
The scandal-scarred first son had been admitted to the DC bar in 2007 and was listed as paying $331 yearly to maintain his active membership.
Hunter does not appear to have actively practiced law in DC in recent years, though he held an “of counsel” position at the powerful Democratic-linked law firm of Boies Schiller Flexner LLP during his father’s vice presidency.
The first son’s law license in Connecticut is currently on an administrative suspension for failure to pay a reinstatement fee, records suggest.
The younger Biden currently makes his home in California.
Sentencing in the firearm case is expected to take place sometime in the fall and Hunter faces up to 25 years behind bars as well as fines of up to roughly $750,000 — though given that he’s a first-time offender, his penalty is expected to be much lower.
Additionally, Hunter is set to stand trial starting Sept. 5 in Los Angeles on a nine-count indictment of intentionally evading some $1.4 million in taxes between 2016 and 2019.
Hunter has pleaded not guilty to all counts.
The first son’s legal team did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
