By: Steve Lash

The seven judges on Maryland’s top court were ready to hear Timothy S. Gordon explain to them why he should not be disbarred for misuse of escrow funds.

But in an unusual move, Gordon announced to the Court of Appeals that “I wish at this time to consent to the relief sought [by Bar Counsel] and that I be disbarred.”

Attorneys who consent to having their law licenses pulled generally do so much earlier in the Attorney Grievance Commission‘s disciplinary process, thus saving them the burden of paying Bar Counsel’s court and investigative costs.

The Court of Appeals, in its Monday order disbarring Gordon, also ordered him to pay Bar Counsel’s costs of $1,200.

“I was as surprised as anybody else,” Court of Appeals Judge Glenn T. Harrell Jr. said Tuesday of Gordon’s Sept. 7 announcement in open court. “This was unusual in that the denouement did not occur until the day of oral argument.”

Gordon, who was a Hagerstown solo practitioner, could not be reached for comment.