Post: Ethical Violation???
Posted by Insert Fake Name Here on 7/03/11
Hello,
First, let me say I am not a lawyer and not a law student
looking for help with homework. I'm just a person in a
tough spot looking for a little assistance.
I would like to know if there is sufficient grounds to make
an official ethical complain about an attorney, and if
so.... how?
Here is my unique situation.
I was injured on a construction site by a third party a few
years ago. Within 24 hours I contacted and met with a
immediate family member and his wife who are both attorneys
who primarily defended construction cases similar to mine.
At that time only one of them was a practicing lawyer within
the state and the other was working for the government. I
consulted them and asked if they could represent me. They
said that living out of state made it impossible to be my
lawyer but offered to assist me in finding a firm to
represent me. For months they both acted as my advisers,
even after I retained my current lawyer. I fully trusted
these persons being they were family members, and more
importantly lawyers.
At some point there was a nasty falling out within the
family, and the above mentioned attorney hasnt been heard
from since.
My 3rd party lawsuit is still in the court system. During
the discovery phase the defense released numerous emails
from an "anonymous" source who claimed to have detailed
knowledge of the accident and extensive personal history
knowledge about the plaintiff (me). These emails gave
details of the accident that only I and my attorney would
know, these emails slanderously painted a picture of me and
my case as a fraud, and gave personal info about me that
only the closest people to me in my life would know. Some
aspects of the email were true, but most were outright lies
that were added to hurt me, my credibility, and my case.
Since this person who was in contact with defense used an
alias, a fake email address, and refused to come forward to
be interviewed by the defense..... defense council
petitioned to court to subpena the internet provider for the
unknown person's IP address. The motion has not been ruled
on and is still up in the air.
When reading these "anonymous" emails with my attorney I
knew right away who it was. My attorney said it was
"somebody with working knowledge of the civil court system,
especially in the area of construction law" and "somebody
with a vendetta against me". I know with certitude that the
anonymous source was the family member that advised me. I
know no other lawyers specializing in construction had
details about my case and had any reason to attempt to
torpedo my claim.
If the court issues the subpena, and it is found that my
adviser contacted, leaked, and helped the defense out of
spite.... is there, and can this person be brought up on
charges of ethical violations?
If the court does NOT issue the subpena, and this anonymous
person remains anonymous in the eyes of the court, and this
still be reported to and investigated by the Bar Association?
How is this done?
Is there any cases of such actions that I can cite if there
is an official complaint?
Thank you for your time and assistance.
Posts on this thread, including this one
- Ethical Violation???, 7/03/11, by Insert Fake Name Here.