Statute of limitations mistake results in disciplinary sanctions

Mike Frisch of the Legal Profession Blog wrote today on a case in which the Tennessee Supreme Court affirmed a five month suspension imposed on an attorney for engaging in negligent conduct. The attorney missed the statute of limitations deadline for filing a personal injury suit. When I teach Torts, I tell my students this is one of the dumbest mistakes an attorney can make and I tell them it is a common basis for malpractice suits. I can now tell them it can also result in disciplinary sanctions. I knew that was true before, but my sense (which could be wrong since I am not following every single sanctions case out there) is that courts do not typically impose disciplinary sanctions for single instances of purely negligent conduct.