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http://www.wsba.org/media/publications/barnews/ethics/sep-97-ethics.htm Supreme Court Provides Greater Public Access To Disciplinary Information by Barrie Althoff, WSBA Chief Disciplinary Counsel, & Randy Beitel, WSBA Disciplinary Counsel Opinions expressed herein are the author's and are not official or unofficial WSBA positions. The Supreme Court recently amended the Rules for Lawyer Discipline, effective September 1, 1997, to provide greater public access to disciplinary information. This culminates a three-year review by the Board of the Governors and the Supreme Court of how open the disciplinary process should be to the public. The amendment adopts changes recommended last October by the Board of Governors. The amendments are intended to balance the needs of legal consumers for greater information about lawyers, of the Bar for increased public confidence in the Bar's self-regulatory lawyer discipline system, and of lawyers to protect their reputations from serious and undeserved harm resulting from sometimes baseless grievances, even though such grievances may be ultimately dismissed. The amended rules provide greater public access to the system, but only after there has first been a determination that there are substantial concerns about a lawyer's conduct. Key Features of Current System Remain Although the amendments are extensive and important, three key features of the existing rules remain intact: Investigations Remain Confidential. Investigations of disciplinary grievances remain confidential. Under both the existing and amended rules, if a grievance is dismissed as frivolous, unsupported by sufficient evidence, or beyond disciplinary jurisdiction, and the dismissals are upheld, the grievance, with a few exceptions, remains confidential and never becomes public under the RLDs. Full Article: http://www.wsba.org/media/publications/barnews/ethics/sep-97-ethics.htm |
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