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Regulating Legal Misconduct in the Commonwealth of Virginia: The Gender Influence

NCJ Number
210260
Journal
Women & Criminal Justice Volume: 15 Issue: 3/4 Dated: 2004 Pages: 81-95
Author(s)
Brian K. Payne; Victoria Time; Sarah Raper
Date Published
2004
Length
15 pages
Annotation
This study examined the characteristics and the handling of 325 disciplinary cases that involved lawyers practicing in Virginia between January 1999 and December 2002.
Abstract
In Virginia, clients, fellow attorneys, or other judicial officials who wish to file complaints about lawyers may do so by contacting the Virginia State Bar. If a disciplinary hearing is deemed warranted, evidence of professional misconduct is presented at the hearing, and bar officials decide whether misconduct occurred; and if so, what sanctions should be imposed. Nearly 90 percent of the sanctioned attorneys were males (n=288), and approximately one-fourth of the attorneys accused of misconduct came from Richmond, Norfolk, and Virginia Beach. Two- thirds of the cases involved either some aspect of the lawyer-client relationship or the maintenance of the integrity of the profession. Thirty cases involved disciplinary action against attorneys who had been convicted of a crime. The most common sanctions were suspensions (n=116), public reprimands (n=100), and license revocations (n=91). Those who violated a lawyer/client rule were more likely to be given a public reprimand than those who violated another rule. Attorneys sanctioned for a criminal conviction were more likely than other sanctioned attorneys to be suspended or have their license revoked. Men were more likely than women to be sanctioned for failing to maintain the integrity of the profession and for a criminal conviction; whereas, women were more likely to be sanctioned for failure to comply with previous orders and failure to show fairness to opposing party and counsel. Theoretical implications of the findings are discussed, along with future research. 5 tables and 38 references

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