Legal Ethics

Emeritus Law Professor Sanctioned Over The Disclosure Of Documents

Sometimes teacher doesn't know best.

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Sometimes teacher doesn’t know best. That’s the moral of the story of G. Robert Blakey, an emeritus professor at Notre Dame Law School, known for writing the RICO laws, who was recently sanctioned by the D.C. bar.

It all started by offering advice to a former student, M. Adriana Kopeck. Kopeck was an in-house lawyer at General Electric when she came across confidential, internal documents that she believed demonstrated fraud at the company. She sought the advice of her old professor, as well as that of Lynne Bernabei of Bernabei & Wachtel. As a result, the documents were allegedly disclosed to a New York Times reporter, a federal prosecutor, and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

The D.C. bar has concluded these actions are ethical breaches by Professor Blakey, though he did receive the lightest rebuke possible — an informal admonition. The National Law Journal reports on the rationale behind the light penalty:

In Blakey’s informal admonition, bar counsel lawyers said they took into account several “mitigating factors.” Those included Blakey’s age—he turns 80 in January—his lack of disciplinary history, his “exemplary record of public service” and the fact that he wasn’t motivated by personal gain. Koeck paid him a “nominal retainer, probably $5.00,” according to the admonition.

Blakey believed the GE documents fell under a crime-fraud exception to the attorney-client privilege, according to the admonition. The bar counsel’s office said he failed to account for the requirements of local practice rules that govern how lawyers handle confidential client information.

At least Blakey can take solace that one day his travails may make for an excellent issue-spotting exercise.

Prominent Law Prof Sanctioned For D.C. Ethics Violation [National Law Journal]

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