Bar Watch, Inc., obtained documentary proof of misconduct at the North Carolina State Bar in Raleigh, and evidence suggesting a years-long pattern of wrongful discipline of attorneys, including disbarment, based on false facts. This short, one-paragraph Bar Counsel Letter exemplifies the problem; it contains multiple ethical violations on its face, enumerated in the commentary below the letter. The problem at the NC Bar is quite real.
The Bar Watch, Inc.’s founder’s situation is particularly odd; the Bar is suing the founder for an order requiring access to years of clients’ files, yet the underlying investigation lacks the legally required “allegation of misconduct” (27 NCAC §§ 01B.0107 (1) and (3)). The Bar seeks to violate hundreds of clients’ personal privacy rights based on a suspicion; the Bar is not even accusing the founder of having committed any specific act violating an ethical rule.
Bar Watch, Inc. (BWI) seeks public support for the proposition that no attorney is above the law, including State Bar employee-attorneys and State Bar officers. In recent months, multiple good-faith complaints have been filed against NC State Bar attorneys, one of which is supported by two independent expert legal analyses. Bar attorneys cannot, of course, lawfully assess complaints against themselves, due to the obvious conflict of interest; but this is exactly what they are doing. Meanwhile, they continue investigations of their peer North Carolina attorneys, but according to a growing number of such NC attorneys, the State Bar attorney-investigators have twisted facts that show no evidence of wrongdoing into new “facts” supporting a finding of misconduct, and penalties are being imposed based on the new “facts.” These disturbing allegations must be investigated for the sake of justice, to preserve or restore the Bar’s integrity and reputation.
If NC State Bar attorneys have nothing to hide, they should be eager to prove that by cooperating with an independent investigation as required by law. The suppression of such investigation suggests otherwise, as the act of suppression itself constitutes misconduct, a violation of conflict of interest rules.
Please support this project and explore my Bar Watch site for more details, be sure to visit periodically, as we anticipate ongoing updates.
Alan Phillips, Esq., Director
Bar Watch, Inc.