Hancock County’s probate judge has been suspended from practicing law for three years after facing multiple contempt orders over unpaid child support payments to his ex-wife.
William B. Blaisdell IV, who turned himself in at Hancock County jail in mid-March after a judge issued an arrest warrant because he failed to appear at a Belfast court hearing, faced his fourth contempt order in late April.
In separate proceedings over his law license with the Maine Board of Overseers of the Bar, the state entity that governs the conduct of Maine lawyers, Justice James Martemucci issued a three-year suspension in a June 17 court order to which both parties consented.
Justice Martemucci extended Blaisdell’s previous one-year suspension, which expired in April, to three years, noting that — in addition to failing to pay child support and attorney fees — the disgraced part-time lawyer had misled the court on multiple occasions and had perjured himself during his post-divorce proceedings in District Court.
During a May 15 status conference between Blaisdell and the Board of Overseers of the Bar, the Ellsworth-based part time lawyer said he was “no longer in contempt nor subject to a contempt order,” though the court later learned his latest contempt order is expected to remain in effect until June 30, 2029, according to court documents.
Blaisdell will be eligible to have his law license reinstated on June 17, 2029, but Martemucci’s order requires he be up to date on his child support payments, attorney fees, tax liabilities and civil penalties before then, as well.
Blaisdell’s legal troubles stem from his ongoing refusal to stay up to date on tens of thousands of dollars in court-ordered child support payments to his ex-wife. Most recently, in late April, he paid $8,396 after a judge warned he would impose a 90-day jail sentence if he didn’t pay.
The part-time judge who had already been temporarily suspended from practicing law or serving on the bench is still listed on Hancock County’s official website as its elected probate judge. During his absence, the county’s probate cases — many of which involve sensitive family matters like estates, guardianships and name changes — are being handled by other judges from nearby counties.
Blaisdell’s post-2019 divorce proceedings are being held in Waldo County because of his position in Hancock County.
A Waldo County judge found that Blaisdell perjured himself while testifying under oath in October 2025 about his depleted brokerage accounts, which he claimed left him unable to pay child support.
Yet just two days after that sworn testimony, Blaisdell’s financial statements showed he had more than $510,000 between his Charles Schwab brokerage and IRA accounts, according to the family court’s findings.
Blaisdell did not immediately respond to inquiries Tuesday from the Bangor Daily News.