Maryland’s Attorney Grievance Commission Rejects Bar Complaint Against Carr

WASHINGTON Jan. 12, 2026 – The Attorney Grievance Commission of Maryland rejected a complaint filed by the Campaign for Accountability, or CfA, against FCC Chairman Brendan Carr on Thursday, citing a state bar rule that allows for dismissal without first-hand knowledge of misconduct. 

The complaint, filed in the District of Columbia and Maryland on Sept. 23, 2025 by Michelle Cuppersmith, executive director of the CfA, highlights recent public comments made by Carr against Jimmy Kimmel in which Carr “invoke(d) his regulatory authority to publicly demand ABC/Disney terminate late night host Jimmy Kimmel for his commentary, threatening to investigate broadcasters that air political content with which Mr. Carr disagrees.” 

The complaint alleges that Carr’s conduct may go against several state and district bar rules, for which the CfA had hoped the Grievance Commissions of Maryland and D.C. would investigate. 

“Although Maryland rules provide that Bar counsel ‘may’ dismiss a complaint that draws on public accounts – leaving it fully within counsel’s discretion to investigate allegations of violations – the Bar chose not to” investigate further, Cuppersmith said in a statement. “Clearly, the Bar was looking for an excuse to duck its responsibility to hold Carr accountable for potential misconduct”.  

The dismissal cites that the information provided to the Grievance Commission came from third party sources such as “public websites, news reports and social media posts” which allows for the Bar Council decline to investigate without first hand knowledge. 

Unlike Maryland, D.C.'s disciplinary council does not have the same bar rules regarding third party information . In an email to Broadband Breakfast, Cuppersmith said that she is hopeful that D.C's disciplinary council will address the substance f the complaint as a result. According to Cuppersmith, complaints were filed in both jurisdictions because Carr is a member of the bar in both Maryland and D.C.

All of the alleged conduct in the complaint had been tied to public comments made on a podcast in which he suggested he may take action against Disney for the comments made by Kimmel after the assassination of Charlie Kirk, and subsequent tweets made by Carr in which he praised Nexstar for preempting Kimmel’s light night show “for the foreseeable future,” according to the complaint.

The CfA is a nonpartisan nonprofit that “uses research, litigation, and aggressive communications to expose misconduct and malfeasance in public life.” according to their website. 

Another complaint was made against Carr last July by the nonpartisan group the Freedom of Press Foundation to the D.C. bar’s disciplinary council. This complaint also alleged that Carr violated multiple rules of the DC Bar in his approval of Paramount's merger with Skydance two days after its $16 million settlement with Donald Trump over a 60 minutes interview with Kamala Harris.