A judge has decided that pro-Donald Trump attorney Lin Wood is not fit to practice law.
Delaware Superior Court Judge Craig Karsnitz criticized Wood in a Monday decision, claiming he is unfit to be a lawyer. In turn, Wood’s right to represent Trump’s former aide Carter Page was revoked. “The conduct of Mr. Wood, albeit not in my jurisdiction, exhibited a toxic stew of mendacity, prevarication, and surprising incompetence,” Judge Craig Karsnitz wrote.
Newsweek reports that Karsnitz said he is required to “ensure that those practicing before [him] are of sufficient character, and conduct themselves with sufficient civility and truthfulness.” This is especially the case when out-of-state counsel is chosen, the outlet reports. Wood is a Georgia-based attorney.
Karsnitz said he became concerned with Wood’s ability to practice law following his support of Trump’s claims that fraud took place in the 2020 presidential election. Karsnitz added that after reviewing decisions made in lawsuits, Wood filed in Georgia and Wisconsin. He highlighted that the case in Georgia was “textbook frivolous litigation,” which included “an error-ridden affidavit,” and that the complaint Wood filed in Wisconsin “would not survive a law school civil procedure class.”
“What has been shown in Court decisions of our sister States satisfies me that it would be inappropriate and inadvisable to continue Mr. Wood’s permission to practice before this court,” Karsnitz said. “I acknowledge that I preside over a small part of the legal world in a small state. However, we take pride in our bar.” He continued: “Prior to the pandemic, I watched daily counsel practice before me in a civil, ethical way to tirelessly advance the interests of their clients. It would dishonor them were I to allow this pro hac vice order to stand.”
Karsnitz also acknowledged Wood’s involvement with inciting and encouraging the violence that happened last week at the U.S. Capitol. He added that Karsnitz’s tweets calling for the arrest and execution of Mike Pence and others were “too disgusting and outrageous to repeat.” Karsnitz said while he is “not here to litigate if Mr. Wood was ultimately the source of incitement,” there is “no doubt these tweets, and many other things, incited these riots.”
Three weeks ago, Karsnitz’s asked Wood to explain why his participation in the election lawsuits wouldn’t jeopardize his ability to represent Page, who is accusing Yahoo! of “maliciously” publishing “false accusations” that Page was “secretly plotting with Russian leaders to sabotage the 2016 presidential election.”
