Proposed attorney conduct rule may bring chilling repercussions

Lawyers' Forum

By Donna Kathryn Kelly

Donna Kathryn Kelly is senior counsel at the Thomas More Society, a national public interest law firm.

Posted January 18, 2017 1:12 PM

The First Amendment rights of Illinois attorneys will be temporarily in peril, if the Illinois Supreme Court adopts American Bar Association Model Rule 8.4(g) as part of the Illinois Rules of Professional Conduct.The ABA model rule is currently under consideration by the Illinois Committee on Professional Responsibility, which, in turn, will make a recommendation to the court as to whether or not to enact the rule.The rule, which could properly be characterized as the “Political Correctness Mandate for Attorneys …

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