BANGOR — The Maine Board of Overseers of the Bar on Tuesday began a disciplinary hearing held in response to complaints about an Ellsworth attorney accused of violating rules of professional conduct.

The Board of Overseers is accusing Christopher Whalley of five counts of engaging in conduct unworthy of an attorney. The hearing, presided over by Maine Supreme Court Justice Warren Silver, is to resume on May 7.

In her opening statements, Assistant Bar Counsel Aria Eee said the themes of “duty and candor” consistently arise in the complaints filed against Whalley.

“They expected he would be honest with them and diligent with their interests,” Eee said of the complainants. As a result of Whalley’s conduct, the court will find he “did fail to properly discharge his duties,” she said.

In response, Whalley’s attorney, William Cote, said that extenuating circumstances led to the complaints being filed.

On the witness stand, Whalley admitted he was no stranger to the board. He has been suspended or reprimanded by the overseers four times since 2003. Most recently, in December 2008, he was reprimanded for conduct unworthy of an attorney and for violating his professional standards of care and judgment.

“I was coming up short in many ways,” Whalley said.

While under suspension, Whalley was monitored by another attorney, as ordered by the court. He said he also attended counseling.

“It was a major reconstruction personally for me,” Whalley said. “It made a significant difference.”

The most important lesson, he said, was learning that boundaries do exist between an attorney and his client.

Whalley admitted there had been some errors in filings done on behalf of the complainants. These, he said, occurred at physically and emotionally troubling times in his life: when his mother was dying of cancer, when his daughter was getting married and when he had need for emergency dental care. He was not in the office during much of this time and others were handling the filings, he said.

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