Law Schools, Legal Ethics

Read The Law Professors' Ethics Complaint Against Kellyanne Conway

Kellyanne Conway is the subject of a legal ethics complaint, which isn't shocking really.

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Kellyanne Conway (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty)

Kellyanne Conway (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty)

It’s becoming increasingly likely that Kellyanne Conway isn’t a real person so much as a Professional Responsibility issue-spotter made flesh. Between making up terrorist attacks or shilling Ivanka’s crummy baubles or generally degraded political discourse by treating it like a criminal trial, Kellyanne’s had a busy month of run-ins with the generally accepted principles of legal ethics.

And a group of law professors thought the D.C. Bar should know about it.

The gang of 15 law professors specializing in legal ethics and professional responsibility lodged a formal complaint against Conway in a letter dated February 20, which you can read in all its glory right here. At the heart of the complaint, the professors cite multiple incidents that they claim violate D.C. Rule of Professional Conduct 8.4(c). If it’s been awhile since your last ethics CLE, Rule 8.4(c) states:

It is professional misconduct for a lawyer to… Engage in conduct involving dishonesty, fraud, deceit, or misrepresentation.

The professors acknowledge that this is a pretty broad rule, but contend that Conway’s visibility and the gravity of her role in the White House requires stricter application of the rule for the sake of the profession. The Model Rules go so far as to make this point explicit. The D.C. Rules don’t include this comment. What a shocker that D.C. declined to include the part about holding public officials to higher standards!

After walking through the lowlights of Conway’s first month, the professors state:

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We do not file this complaint lightly. In addition to being a member of the DC Bar, Ms. Conway is a graduate of the George Washington University Law School, one of the District’s premier law schools. We believe that, at one time, Ms. Conway, understood her ethical responsibilities as a lawyer and abided by them. But she is currently acting in a way that brings shame upon the legal profession. As the Preamble to the Model Rules states, a lawyer plays an important role as a “public citizen” in addition to our other roles.

Professor Abbe Smith, one of the signatories to the complaint, told the Washington Post that the complaint was necessary because, “Ms. Conway’s conduct was so outside the norm for a member of the legal profession.”

Whether or not this proceeds to a disciplinary action is in the hands of the D.C. Bar. If they decide to go ahead with the matter, we can look forward to a submission from Kellyanne laying out the alternative facts.

(Full letter on the next page….)

Law professors file misconduct complaint against Kellyanne Conway [Washington Post]
Kellyanne Conway Endorsed Ivanka Trump’s Brand, Which Is Pretty Illegal [Fashionista]

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HeadshotJoe Patrice is an editor at Above the Law and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. Feel free to email any tips, questions, or comments. Follow him on Twitter if you’re interested in law, politics, and a healthy dose of college sports news.

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