Court docket on lawyer discipline to be public

Beginning on February 1, the Supreme Court will publicly disclose documents on actions it is considering or taking to discipline lawyers who are members of its bar, a process long shielded in privacy,the Court announced on Tuesday. Currently, that file is treated as confidential, although final disciplinary actions are made public along with regular orders on pending cases.In the new arrangement, attorneys involved in a case may ask to keep their responseconfidential, in whole or in part.

Under the new disclosure policy, the Courts announcement made clear, public availability of that docket will be the general rule. It will apply to documents filed after February 1. But if there are reasons to keep an attorneys response confidential, that will be considered on a case-by-case basis, if sought by the lawyer involved. Typically, a lawyer is notified that potential disciplinary action is being considered by way of a show cause order, to which the lawyer then has a chance to respond and to argue against a disciplinary order.

One of the Courts most noteworthydisciplinary cases now unfolding involves a show cause order issued on December 8, involving a Washington, D.C., attorney, Howard Neil Shipley. The order told him to respond within forty days on why he should not be sanctioned for his handling of a specific petition for review. There was no explanation of why that document may have involved a breach of either the Courts rules or ethical rules. The petition at issuewas rambling and, at several points, nearly incoherent. There was an indication that a non-lawyer may have had a central role in its drafting.

The forty daysShipley was given to respond haveelapsed, but the Court at his request has now given him until February 19 to respond. It isunknown, at this point, whether the new publicaccess policy will apply to the response to be filed in his case.