People v. Maynard

Alison Maynard (defendant) was licensed to practice law in Colorado, but her license was temporarily suspended due to a disciplinary violation. While suspended, Maynard repeatedly assisted pro se litigants—individuals representing themselves—by drafting briefs in litigation matters and providing legal advice. According to Maynard’s online posts, she believed the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting had never happened and primarily helped individuals who shared that belief. Maynard openly discussed her behind-the-scenes legal work online, which indicated that she had provided advice and assistance to litigants in multiple states where she had no license. Maynard claimed she could do this because she was not charging fees or representing these individuals in court. In one Wisconsin action, a pro se defendant breached a confidentiality agreement and gave Maynard a deposition video and transcript containing sensitive personal information about a deponent whose son had been killed at Sandy Hook. Maynard distributed the materials to others and posted them online. These actions endangered the deponent, who had already moved his remaining family multiple times to avoid credible death threats from people who believed the shooting was not real. Maynard also filed frivolous ethics complaints against the deponent’s attorney. A Wisconsin court held the pro se defendant in contempt but believed it lacked jurisdiction to sanction Maynard, who was not licensed in Wisconsin, did not live in Wisconsin, and had not appeared in the lawsuit. Colorado disciplinary authorities filed a complaint against Maynard, alleging that she had violated the professional-conduct rules by failing to comply with court orders and engaging in the unauthorized practice of law. Maynard did not respond. The Colorado Supreme Court reviewed the matter.