TALLAHASSEE — Largo lawyer Denise Tamara Herman was recently publicly reprimanded and placed on probation by the Florida Supreme Court following the attorney’s plea of no contest to a driving under the influence charge.
She had been previously convicted of a DUI in 2008, according to court records.
On April 18, 2014, Herman was arrested on DUI charges, a misdemeanor in the state. On May 17, 2014, the attorney pleaded nolo contendere, which means she accepted conviction without admitting guilt, in a criminal court.
Herman allegedly failed to inform the Florida Bar of her conviction which, along with her prior DUI conviction, aided in displaying that the attorney had shown “indifference to legal obligation,” court records state.
The attorney was charged with violation of the rules regulating the Florida Bar Rule 3-4.3 for misconduct, Rule 3-4.4 for criminal misconduct, Rule 3-7.2(e) for failing to inform the Florida Bar of her judgment, and Rule 4-8.4(b) for committing an act that adversely reflects on the attorney’s trustworthiness and honor. The attorney responded to these charges by admitting to all matters except for one full denial and two partial denials.
Herman will be placed on 18-month probation, receive a public reprimand via publication and will incur all the court costs in the matter, which at the time of filing were $2,153.26.
The Pinellas County attorney was admitted to the Florida Bar in 2006 upon graduating from the Rutgers School of Law in New Jersey. Herman operates a one-person firm where she specializes in family and foreclosure law. She has one prior record of discipline, another public reprimand from March 2014 for failing to pay back a $10,000 loan.