OLR wants 90-day suspension for attorney who allegedly lied to clients

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A Milwaukee attorney who allegedly lied to clients for more than six years about a case that had already been dismissed may have his license suspended.

Mark Tishberg, who has practiced law in Wisconsin since 1990, failed to have the lawsuit in question served on the defendants within the required 90-day window, according to an Office of Lawyer Regulation complaint filed Monday.

He is facing five misconduct counts. The OLR is asking state Supreme Court justices to suspend Tishberg for 90 days.

The suit, which involved a United Airlines passenger who claimed he was injured on a flight in January 2001, was later dismissed because of a jurisdictional issue. Tishberg, according to the complaint, could not refile the suit because the statute of limitation had expired.

But Tishberg never told his clients about any of the trouble with the case – including that it had been dismissed – until June 2010. That was after the clients filed a grievance, the OLR alleges.

Tishberg has not yet filed a response to the complaint. But he said Wednesday that he thought the OLR had decided to not pursue the case, and that he “thought it was resolved with OLR and the client.”

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