Lisa Jacobs, an Aventura attorney admitted to the Florida Bar in 1999, was disbarred by the Florida Supreme Court on December 15, 2025 — not for the underlying misconduct that originally got her suspended, but for a pattern of deliberate noncompliance that stretched across multiple court orders, multiple contempt proceedings, and more than two years of willful defiance of the Florida Supreme Court’s authority.
The disbarment was effective immediately. Jacobs had been previously suspended, meaning she was already out of the practice of law when the final order came down. The Florida Bar described her conduct plainly in its petition: “This is the third contempt proceedings brought forth by the bar for respondent’s failure to comply. The bar and the Supreme Court of Florida have finite resources and due to respondent’s continued disregard to her obligation to comply, respondent should be disbarred.”
The Original Suspension: July 2023
The disciplinary timeline begins on July 14, 2023, when the Florida Supreme Court issued an order suspending Lisa Jacobs from the practice of law for 91 days in connection with a separate misconduct matter (Case No. SC2023-0703). The details of the underlying misconduct in that case are distinct from the contempt proceedings that followed — but they set the stage for everything that came after.
Under Rule 3-5.1(h) of the Rules Regulating The Florida Bar, any attorney who receives a suspension of 91 days or more must, within 30 days of the suspension order, take the following specific steps:
— Notify all current clients of the suspension in writing; — Notify all opposing counsel in pending matters; — Notify all courts and tribunals in which the attorney has active matters; — Remove all indications on social media, websites, and other platforms that the attorney is eligible to practice law; — File a sworn affidavit with The Florida Bar certifying that all of the above steps have been completed.
This affidavit requirement is not optional. It is not discretionary. It is a mandatory condition of every suspension order, and failure to comply exposes a suspended attorney to contempt proceedings and additional discipline.
On July 18, 2023, the Florida Bar’s Lawyer Regulation Headquarters sent Jacobs a letter explicitly spelling out her obligations under Rule 3-5.1(h) and the consequences of noncompliance. Her suspension was set to run through November 14, 2023.
Jacobs did not comply.
First and Second Contempt: A Pattern Takes Shape
The Florida Bar’s April 9, 2024 petition — filed with the Florida Supreme Court as Case No. 2024-90,031(OSC) — outlined the scope of Jacobs’s noncompliance. According to the petition, Jacobs failed to file the required sworn affidavit certifying her compliance with the notification requirements. She also allowed at least two LinkedIn profiles to remain active and visible, both of which still indicated she was a practicing attorney eligible to take on legal matters — a direct violation of the requirement to remove all public representations of active practice.
The Bar’s petition at that stage sought a one-year suspension and $1,250 in administrative costs, and asked the court to require Jacobs to comply with the terms of her original suspension order before she could even petition for reinstatement.
By the time the Florida Bar filed its disbarment petition in 2025, that first contempt case had resolved — but Jacobs still had not complied. The Bar then filed a second contempt petition. That too failed to produce the required affidavit. When the third contempt petition was filed in 2025, the Bar had run out of patience.
The petition stated in plain terms what the record showed: Jacobs had been told three separate times, across three separate proceedings, what she needed to do. Each time, she had done nothing.
The Disbarment: December 15, 2025
On December 15, 2025, the Florida Supreme Court granted the Bar’s petition and ordered Lisa Jacobs disbarred from the practice of law in Florida, effective immediately. Case No. SC2025-1537.
The court’s order confirmed that the disbarment was entered on a contempt basis — Jacobs’s continued failure to file the Rule 3-5.1(h) affidavit. Because Jacobs was already under suspension at the time the disbarment was entered, the disbarment took effect immediately rather than after a 30-day transition window.
The disbarment was confirmed and published in the Florida Bar’s January 1, 2026 disciplinary report, which covered court orders issued between October 11 and December 30, 2025.
Why the Affidavit Requirement Matters
The Rule 3-5.1(h) affidavit requirement is one of the most fundamental obligations in the Florida disciplinary system. When an attorney is suspended, their clients are entitled to prompt, written notification so they can seek other representation before deadlines pass and rights are lost. Opposing counsel and tribunals are entitled to know that the attorney on the other side of a case — or whose signature is on a pending motion — is no longer licensed to practice.
When an attorney ignores this requirement, it is not a technical lapse. It is a failure that can directly harm clients who may not know their representation has ended, and it undermines the court’s ability to manage pending matters effectively.
In Jacobs’s case, the failure was not accidental or isolated. The Florida Bar documented it across multiple proceedings over a period of more than two years. When the court finally concluded that no lesser sanction would produce compliance, it imposed the ultimate sanction: permanent removal from the profession.
Reinstatement
Under Florida Bar rules, a disbarred attorney may not apply for readmission for five years from the effective date of disbarment. If Jacobs were ever to seek readmission, she would be required to undergo an extensive background investigation, demonstrate rehabilitation, and retake the Florida Bar examination.
Given that the disbarment arose from repeated contempt of the Florida Supreme Court’s orders — the most direct possible defiance of the court’s authority — any future reinstatement petition would face a high burden of proof. Jacobs would need to demonstrate, among other things, that the conduct leading to her disbarment has been fully remediated and that she presents no ongoing risk to the public.
The Broader Pattern
Lisa Jacobs is one of several attorneys in the Florida Bar’s January 1, 2026 disciplinary cycle whose removal from the profession stemmed not from the original misconduct that triggered their suspension, but from contemptuous failure to comply with the suspension’s notification requirements. Aram Caldarera Bloom of Miami received a three-year suspension on the same basis. The Florida Supreme Court has made clear through these cases that it regards the Rule 3-5.1(h) affidavit requirement as non-negotiable — and that repeated noncompliance will escalate discipline all the way to disbarment.
Disciplinary Timeline
July 14, 2023 — Florida Supreme Court suspends Jacobs for 91 days (Case No. SC2023-0703) July 18, 2023 — Florida Bar sends compliance letter outlining Rule 3-5.1(h) obligations November 14, 2023 — Original 91-day suspension ends; affidavit still not filed April 9, 2024 — Florida Bar files first contempt petition (Case No. 2024-90,031(OSC)); seeks one-year suspension and $1,250 costs 2024–2025 — Second contempt petition filed after continued noncompliance 2025 — Third contempt petition filed; Bar requests disbarment December 15, 2025 — Florida Supreme Court orders disbarment, effective immediately (Case No. SC2025-1537) January 1, 2026 — Disbarment confirmed in Florida Bar disciplinary report
Sources
- The Florida Bar, January 1, 2026 Disciplinary Actions — floridabar.org/the-florida-bar-news/january-1-2026-disciplinary-actions/
- The Florida Bar, Supreme Court Disciplines 11 Attorneys (News Release) — floridabar.org/news-release/disciplinary-action/supreme-court-disciplines-11-attorneys-13/
- ALABnews, “Florida Bar Files Petition for Contempt Against Attorney Lisa Jacobs for Disregarding Terms of Prior Suspension” (May 17, 2024) — alabnews.com
- Florida Politics, “Florida Bar, Supreme Court Discipline 11 Lawyers for Misconduct” (January 5, 2026) — floridapolitics.com
- U.S. District Court, Southern District of Florida, Order of Suspension of Attorney Lisa Jacobs, Florida Bar No. 162159 — flsd.uscourts.gov
- Justia, Attorney Profile: Lisa Jacobs, Aventura, Florida — lawyers.justia.com
- Rules Regulating The Florida Bar, Rule 3-5.1(h) — floridabar.org
- Florida Bar Member Profile, Bar No. 162159 — floridabar.org/directories/find-mbr/profile/?num=162159
