New Haven Man Charged with Unauthorized Practice of Law

A New Haven man who is not a lawyer is being held on $25,000 bond on charges that he practiced law despite being warned not to do so.

JEROME DUNBAR, age 56, of 193 Bassett St., New Haven, was arrested July 3, 2019, by Inspectors from the Statewide Prosecution Bureau in the Office of the Chief State’s Attorney and charged with seven counts of Unauthorized Practice of Law.

Dunbar was being investigated for motor vehicle violations by the New Haven Police Department, which determined that there was an outstanding warrant for his arrest in the unauthorized practice of law.

According to the arrest warrant affidavit, the investigation was initiated by a complaint from the Office of the Chief Disciplinary Counsel in the Judicial Branch and the Office of the Attorney General alleging a pattern of Dunbar practicing law illegally.

Dunbar is not, and never was, an attorney licensed in Connecticut, the warrant states, but in at least seven instances filed paperwork or actually appeared in court representing himself to be an attorney. He was advised by the Office of the Chief Disciplinary Counsel on several occasions not to represent himself as an attorney, the warrant states.

Dunbar is being held on $25,000 and is scheduled to appear in Hartford Superior Court, G.A. No. 14, on July 29, 2019. The charges are merely accusations and he is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

Unauthorized Practice of Law is a class D felony punishable by up to 5 years in prison and a fine of up to $5,000 on each count.

The case is being prosecuted by the Statewide Prosecution Bureau. The motor vehicle charges are being prosecuted separately in New Haven Superior Court, G.A. No. 23.