Doreen Zankowski (Courtesy photo)

A Boston-based partner at Duane Morris has been suspended for six months from the Massachusetts bar for inflating her billable hours when she was a partner at Saul Ewing Arnstein & Lehr.

Doreen Zankowski, a litigator who handles complex litigation, construction and corporate matters, is still listed as a partner on Duane Morris' website as of Friday afternoon.

The order of suspension was entered Nov. 18. A source with knowledge of the matter said Zankowski's suspension begins Dec. 18.

Both Duane Morris and Saul Ewing noted that the matter has is on appeal to the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court, the state's highest appellate court.

A spokesperson for Duane Morris said in a statement Friday: "As this matter has been appealed by the Massachusetts Board of Bar Overseers, the firm has no comment other than to note that the conduct at issue, which involved certain billing practices, all occurred entirely prior to Ms. Zankowski joining Duane Morris and that two of the three clients in question had actually presented testimony in support of Ms. Zankowski."

A spokesperson for Saul Ewing said the firm is declining to comment while the appeal is pending.

According to the Nov. 18 disciplinary opinion, Zankowski brought in more than $3.8 million to Saul Ewing in 2015, the year during which the alleged overbilling took place, and she was considered to be one of the firm's top rainmakers.

The opinion from the Supreme Judicial Court for Suffolk County said the board of bar overseers recommended a two-year suspension, but Associate Justice Frank Gaziano wrote in the 41-page opinion that two years would be "too severe."

A one-count petition for discipline alleged that Zankowski "falsely inflated the number of hours on final bills sent to several clients, improperly entered her time as work by her associates, and knowingly billed clients for taking depositions that she did not attend," according to the opinion.

Zankowski argued that her billing errors were not intentional, the opinion said, and instead were a result of "inadequate, careless, rushed and error-prone" billing practices.

According to the opinion, Zankowski joined Saul Ewing as an income partner in 2011, making about $700,000 a year, and was promoted to equity partner in 2015.

Toward the end of 2015, when the firm was working on determining compensation for partners, she was called on to answer questions about her hours billed. She told the litigation department chair that she billed 3,173 hours and worked more than 720 non-billable hours in 2015, the opinion said.

"The litigation department chair was struck by what he described as the respondent's 'extraordinary billable numbers,' as well as a 'premium' in earnings resulting from the fact that the respondent's overall actual amount billed was more than the original value entered," Gaziano wrote.

After a review involving several members of firm leadership, the department chair became concerned that Zankowski may have billed for time she did not actually work, the opinion said.

She was also questioned about edits she made to associates' bills, and she explained that she sometimes assigned hours she worked herself to associates for tasks that would normally be assigned to associates, the opinion said. But the litigation department chair and general counsel were not satisfied with her answers about the billing irregularities.

Zankowski resigned from Saul Ewing, her last day being March 31, 2016, and moved to Duane Morris soon after.

Saul Ewing continued to investigate her billing practices after her departure and ultimately gave money back to clients, totaling about $260,000, for what it believed was the amount Zankowski had overbilled, the opinion said. The firm did not inform those clients about the reason for overbilling, and most of them ultimately followed Zankowski to Duane Morris, the opinion said.

In explaining the six-month suspension, rather than two years, Gaziano wrote that given the amount Zankowski brought into the firm compared with the amount credited to clients, it's clear that she was a significant revenue generator even without overbilling. And he wrote that she presented compelling arguments and a strong defense against the allegation that she had intentionally deceived clients.

Gaziano also noted that a close family member of Zankowski's was sick throughout 2015 and died just days before Zankowski's disciplinary hearing. While the board did not see her family events as a mitigation, Gaziano wrote, it's possible that her demeanor at the hearing was affected by her recent loss.