• Lawyer conduct is subject to a set of ethical rules (not moral rules).
• Most states follow the American Bar Association (ABA) Model Rules with some differences.
• This is a self-regulating field. A lawyer’s conduct is always at issue—remember the general misconduct rule in ABA Model Rule 8.4.
• There is an obligation to report other attorney misconduct if reasonably certain that misconduct occurred.
• Lawyers must be licensed in a jurisdiction to practice law unless an exception for temporary practice or in-house counsel applies.

Ethics in Action

Read the following disciplinary action(s) where the state bar used the rules discussed in this chapter to bring disciplinary charges against an attorney.

• General Misconduct Rule (discipline for committing a crime that reflects poorly on one’s honesty, trustworthiness, and fitness to practice law).
  • In the Matter of Gordon R. Caplan [two-year suspension]
    http://www.nycourts.gov/reporter/3dseries/2021/2021_01125.htm
  • In the Matter of Robert V. Beltrani
    http://www.nycourts.gov/reporter/3dseries/2021/2021_01004.htm
• Unauthorized Practice of Law [public reprimand]: In the Matter of Heather Downs Russell https://www.wicourts.gov/sc/opinion/DisplayDocument.pdf?content=pdf&seqNo=342084
• Rudy Giuliani Suspended from Practicing Law in New York by Appeals Court

• Watch the following YouTube video on the differences between ethics, morality, and the law.

End-of-Chapter Discussion Questions

1. Does your state have a code of conduct that regulates the practice of law? If yes, what is it?
2. If you are an LLM student, do you come from a country that had a code of conduct that regulates the practice of law? If your country does not have one, should they?
3. Based on where you are currently studying law, skim your state’s rules of professional responsibility. Do they regulate non-lawyers? If so, how? Should non-lawyers be allowed to practice law? Why or why not? Read more about the steps California is taking to allow non-lawyers to practice law in a limited capacity. https://www.reuters.com/legal/legalindustry/a-very-big-deal-nonlaywer-licensing-plan-clears-hurdle-california-2021-09-24/

Additional Resources

Look Up a Lawyer example: http://www.calbar.ca.gov/

Sample Complaint Form: http://www.calbar.ca.gov/Portals/0/documents/forms/Attorney_Misconduct_Complaint.pdf

Image Credits

Fig. 1.3: Gallup, “Honesty/Ethics in Professions,” https://news.gallup.com/poll/1654/honesty-ethics-professions.aspx. Copyright © 2020 by Gallup, Inc.

Fig. 1.4: The State Bar of California, “The State Bar of CA: What Happens After I File a Complaint Against an Attorney?” http://www.calbar.ca.gov/Public/Complaints-Claims/How-to-File-a-Complaint/After-You-File/File-Complaint-Against-Attorney. Copyright © by The State Bar of California.