In his response to the CNMI Supreme Court’s show-cause order for the failure of the AG’s office to respond to pleadings in a timely manner, Buckingham said he has been a licensed attorney since 1977 in the state of Colorado “without public sanction.”
He added, “I have been a member of the CNMI Bar since my temporary admission in 2003 and have never been sanctioned by either the Superior or Supreme Courts.”
According to Buckingham, “the holding of a public proceeding is, in itself, a significant sanction.”
He said his office’s “omissions were oversights, and not predicated on any malice or wrongful intent.”
The AG said he “cannot promise that errors will not occur in the future. [But] I can promise [that] this type of error will cease, [and] we will improve our coordination and communication with the court.”
The Supreme Court has yet to issue an order following the show-cause hearing last week that was attended by Buckingham.
In the medical malpractice lawsuit against the Commonwealth Health Center, which was described by Associate Justice John A. Manglona as the “trigger” for the show cause order, the Supreme Court said CHC, which is being represented by the AGO, “inadequately justified its failure to file a timely cross-appeal brief,” and thus CHC’s motion to file cross-appeal brief was denied.
