Washington, DC-Showing a commitment to correcting the failures of the District of Columbia's attorney discipline system, the D.C. Court of Appeals approved a recommended 25 percent increase of D.C. Bar dues. HALT had submitted written comments urging the court to adopt the higher dues ceiling and offered guidance on how to use the additional $2 million a year to create a more fair, efficient and effective discipline system.

Drawing on widely publicized instances of ethical abuses by court-appointed guardians and evidence of a grave resources crisis that threatens to mount in the nation's capital, HALT argued that the additional revenue generated by the dues increase should be allocated toward hiring more staff and acquiring more space to relieve a rapidly-building backlog of discipline cases.

HALT was careful to note that, while more funds are desperately needed, they are only the first step. The systems' problems are more deep-seated and demand a more radical response than simply throwing money at the system. HALT advised the court to go further than simply raising bar dues by adopting three reforms crucial to making the system more effective and credible: increased nonlawyer participation, more even-handed procedures and firm deadlines.

By endorsing the dues increase, the District took a critical first step in replacing a hamstrung and distrusted system with one that actually protects District residents against unethical and incompetent attorneys. "The only question now," stated HALT Associate Counsel Suzanne Mishkin, "is whether the nation's capital will build upon this fiscal foundation with necessary reforms."

		Click here to read HALT's comments to the D.C. Court of Appeals