Thomas G. Glick
In 1927 the St. Louis Bar Association had been firmly established for over 50 years, though, at that time, it was not yet the Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis (BAMSL) we know today. The Association did not yet have a permanent home, a staff, or a club. However, the fundamental goals of BAMSL had been in place since the inception of the Association. Amongst these fundamental values was a belief that the Association should act to maintain the honor and dignity of the profession of the law, promote legal science and the administration of justice, promote and maintain the efficiency and integrity of the judicial departments of the government.
BAMSL’s daily business in 1927 would have been foreign to even the most active of today s members. It prosecuted disciplinary cases, paid the Missouri Bar dues of its members, and devoted hundreds of hours of time to the debating, voting and endorsing of candidates for judicial office. BAMSL felt an obligation to intercede in judicial elections because the people for whom democracy and justice were to be protected had little or no idea about the reputation or ability of most lawyers seeking judicial office or even of the incumbent judges. The Association did not think the public was ignorant or stupid, but simply lacked information on most candidates. Moreover, the predominant sound-bite-style advertising available then did little to assist the people in discerning the qualifications or judicial philosophies of the candidates.
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10/1/07 7:52 PM
Business Law, Other | Comment (0) |
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A Brief History of BAMSL’s Creation of the Non-Partisan Court Plan
Daniel G. Tobben
INTRODUCTION
Both Plaintiffs’ attorneys and Defendants’ attorneys face the potential of significant legal ethics issues arising in their practices. In Missouri, resolution of those issues is primarily governed by Rule 4 of the Supreme Court Rules. The best advice I can give you in the ethics area is to carefully review Rule 4, whenever you are confronted by an issue, which you recognize as posing ethical dilemmas. In order to increase the probability that you will recognize those issues, an annual reading of Rule 4 is recommended.
There are several other very valuable sources of information, which should be considered and consulted when ethics issues are encountered. The Missouri Bar website has significant practice resources relating to different aspects of legal ethics. Go to www.mobar.com and in the left column, click on “Lawyers” This will lead you to a page labeled “Lawyer Resources,” which contains a section called “Practice Resources.” Practice Resources contains a “clickable listing,” which leads to an abundance of valuable information regarding topics such as: fee agreements, fee dispute program information and rules, informal advisory opinions, risk management information, and information about the Office of Chief Disciplinary Counsel (OCDC). This wealth of legal ethics information is just several clicks away from your internet icon.
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01/1/03 11:46 AM
Other | Comment (0) |
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Ethical Challenges for the Personal Injury Practitioner
