Trump’s Lawyer Facing Ethics Complaints For Telling White House Staffers Not To Hire Lawyers
Trump’s Russia Lawyer Just Got Hit With Two Ethics Complaints.
Donald Trump’s longtime lawyer Marc Kasowitz, who is heading up the president’s defense in the Russia investigation, is now facing two ethics complaints in New York and Washington DC.
The ethics complaints are reportedly over Kasowitz’s advice to White House staffers that it was “not yet necessary” for them to hire their own lawyers to represent them in the investigations led by Special Counsel Mueller as well as Congress.
We learned this week that Donald Trump is now under federal criminal investigation for obstruction of justice. Since then, Vice President Mike Pence revealed that he has hired high-profile attorney to represent him in the Russia investigation.
According to the New York Law Journal, “The ethics complaints contend Kasowitz, managing partner of Kasowitz Benson Torres, violated attorney ethics rules in New York and Washington by giving such advice to unrepresented individuals.”
The ethics watchdog group who that filed on of the complaints is arguing that Kasowitz appears to have violated of two ethics rules.
As reported by the New York Law Journal noted, “First, because he is not a member of the D.C. bar, the group says, ‘by offering aids the legal advice not to retain counsel, it appears Mr. Kasowitz engaged in the unauthorized practice of law.'”
The watchdog group also notes that “a lawyer should not give advice to unrepresented people other than the advice to secure counsel if their interests are or could be in conflict with the lawyer’s client.”
You can read the full report here.
[image via screengrab]
