Reporting Professional Misconduct

(a) A lawyer who knows that another lawyer has committed a violation of the Rules of Professional Conduct that raises a substantial question as to that lawyer’s honesty, trustworthiness, or fitness as a lawyer in other respects shall inform the appropriate disciplinary authority unless the lawyer reasonably believes that the misconduct has been or will otherwise be reported. (b) A lawyer who knows that a judge has committed a violation of applicable rules of judicial conduct that raises a substantial question as to the judge’s fitness for office shall inform the appropriate disciplinary authority unless the lawyer reasonably believes that the misconduct has been or will otherwise be reported. (c) This Rule does not require disclosure of information otherwise protected by Rule 1.6 or information gained by a lawyer or judge while participating in an approved lawyers’ or judges’ assistance program. (SCO 1123 effective July 15, 1993; repromulgated by SCO 1680 effective April 15, 2009) rescinded and ALASKA COMMENT The Committee added language from Judicial Canon 3D(1) to paragraphs (a) and (b) to reflect that a lawyer is not required to report misconduct if the lawyer reasonably believes that the misconduct has been or will be reported. The Committee also amended paragraph (c) by adding a reference to a judges’ assistance program. This conforms the language of the rule to the language of the ABA COMMENT, which speaks equally of lawyers’ assistance programs and judges’ assistance programs. COMMENT Self-regulation of the legal profession requires that members of the profession initiate disciplinary investigation when they know of a violation of the Rules of Professional Conduct. Lawyers have a similar obligation with respect to judicial misconduct. An apparently isolated violation may indicate a pattern of misconduct that only a disciplinary investigation can uncover. Reporting a violation is especially important where the victim is unlikely to discover the offense. PROFESSIONAL CONDUCT