Washington, DC -- HALT's 2002 Lawyer Discipline Report Card, the first comprehensive evaluation of the legal establishment's system of self-regulation in ten years, is a scathing indictment of attorney discipline agencies nationwide. Of the fifty-one jurisdictions surveyed, thirty-nine states received grades below C. Two states - Pennsylvania and North Carolina - flunked outright. No state earned an A.

"To protect the public from unscrupulous, negligent or incompetent attorneys, penalties for misconduct should be swift and certain," stated HALT Executive Director James C. Turner. "Instead, the Lawyer Discipline Report Card found a wide pattern of delay, secrecy and toothless sanctions that amount to a national disgrace."

HALT produced the Lawyer Discipline Report Card to assess whether states have taken any meaningful action to ameliorate the lawyer discipline system since 1992, when an American Bar Association commission declared the system "too slow, too secret, too soft, and too self-regulated." The ABA study followed an earlier 1970 blue ribbon panel led by Supreme Court Justice Tom Clark that found the lawyer discipline was in a "scandalous situation" and required "the immediate attention of the public."

"Despite decades of calls for reform, the attorney discipline system is still badly broken," explained Turner. "Our Lawyer Discipline Report Card found in state after state, the vast majority of consumer complaints are not even investigated or are dismissed on technicalities, while only a handful lead to more than a slap on the wrist. Unscrupulous or incompetent lawyers should be held accountable to the clients they victimize, but the current system fails to do so."

HALT's Report Card grades all 50 states and the District of Columbia in six categories: (1) adequacy of discipline imposed, (2) publicity and responsiveness, (3) openness of the process, (4) fairness of disciplinary procedures, (5) public participation, and (6) promptness. HALT's Report Card shows dismal results in all six categories. Among the worst states were Pennsylvania (F), North Carolina (F), Montana (D), Kentucky (D), Alaska (D), Georgia (D), Nevada (D), New York (D) and Virginia (D).

According to the American Bar Association's most recent statistics, consumers filed more than 114,000 complaints against lawyers during 2000. Attorney discipline agencies imposed public sanctions (i.e., disbarment, suspension, probation or public censure) in only 3,614 cases - less than three and a half percent of all complaints filed. States like Nevada, New Hampshire and Wyoming did not disbar a single attorney.

HALT's Report Card reveals that nine states still have "gag rules" that prohibit legal consumers from speaking about their grievances. "If the agency finds out that you've spoken to a reporter or even just told your friends or family about your grievance, you could be held in contempt of court, fined or imprisoned. This is a clear violation of the First Amendment right of free speech," stated Suzanne M. Mishkin, HALT's Associate Counsel and Director of the Lawyer Accountability Project.

In all states except Iowa, attorneys make up at least two-thirds of the members serving on panels that conduct lawyer discipline hearings. Many states ban the general public, including the individual who filed the complaint, from attending hearings. The outcome of those hearings, even when they result in disbarment, suspension, probation or public reprimand, is often buried in publications only seen by other lawyers. "This country's lawyer discipline system continues to be irresponsible at best - and in some cases downright antagonistic - toward consumers," stated Mishkin.

"It is time for lawyer discipline agencies to take the specific measures that have been proposed over and over again," added Mishkin. HALT recommends that each state's rules of professional conduct be broadened to ensure that more consumer grievances are reviewed. In addition, private reprimands must be replaced with meaningful public discipline. Lawyer discipline agencies should disclose the number and basis of grievances filed against a lawyer, the resolution of closed complaints and a summary of all discipline imposed. "Gag rules" must be abolished. Non-lawyers should be given at least a majority voice on lawyer discipline hearing panels.

HALT's Report Card is based on published reports by the state disciplinary bodies as well as a detailed nationwide survey conducted by the organization between May and September 2002. HALT called each state's disciplinary agency, reviewed the website, brochure and annual report of each agency, analyzed data compiled by the ABA Survey on Lawyer Discipline and assessed the rules and regulations governing each state disciplinary agency.

HALT's Lawyer Accountability Project is a major reform effort to strengthen consumer protections that apply to lawyers and the attorney discipline system. HALT is working to make attorney discipline proceedings accessible to the public and the press.

Founded in 1978, HALT is the oldest and largest consumer legal reform group in the United States. HALT is dedicated to helping all Americans handle their legal affairs simply, affordably and equitably. HALT is known for its extensive collection of self-help books and its advocacy to hold the legal profession accountable. A copy of the Lawyer Discipline Report Card and the summary of findings is available from halt upon request and at www.halt.org.