Ethics

Talk about timing... below I posted a piece about Judge Kent resigning, and Steven Lubet (go Wildcats!) pointed to his earlier piece in the Greenbag about Judge Kent.

In Florida, an attorney faces discipline this spring over a blog entry on a courthouse blog in which he described a judge as an "evil, unfair witch" with an "ugly, condescending attitude" and questioned her mental stability. The Florida Supreme Court refused to hear the lawyer's constitutional argument in October. He will be reprimanded in April and has to pay a $1,200 fine. Florida State Bar v. Conway, No. SC08-326 (Fla.).

In New York, an attorney was recently suspended for five years for committing several ethical violations, including writing an article on a Web site in which he criticized a judge's handling of a divorce and custody proceeding. A New York appeals court said the "overzealous behavior" was disparaging and "constituted conduct prejudicial to the administration of justice." In the Matter of Barry L. Goldstein, No. 2006-10353 (N.Y. App. Div.).