Brief filed: 07/18/2013
Documents
United States v. Kentucky Bar Association
Supreme Court of Kentucky; Case No. 2013-SC-270
Argument(s)
Advisory Ethics Opinion E-435 does not conflict with controlling federal law. Federal statutes, regulations, and court rules recognize the lawyer conduct ethics rules of this state. Opinion E-435 correctly concludes that waiver of ineffective assistance claims at a guilty plea create a conflict of interest for the defense lawyer that the prosecutor cannot impose on a pleading defendant. Conclusion: “Kentucky Ethics Op. E-435 is a correct statement of the controlling ethical principles and does not conflict with any law. The governing of lawyer conduct is completely within the power of the State, and federal prosecutors are bound by the State’s ethics rules under 28 U.S.C. §530b. This ethics opinion governs the conduct of prosecutors and criminal defense attorneys who practice in the state courts of Kentucky as well in the federal courts in Kentucky. Therefore, the U.S. Attorney’s brief of United States in Support of Motion for Review of Ethics Opinion should be rejected and the ethics opinion as written should be affirmed.”
Author(s)
John Wesley Hall, Little Rock, AR; J. Vincent Aprile II, Lynch, Cox, Gilman & Goodman P.S.C., Louisville, KY; Ellen Yaroshefsky, Cardozo School of Law, Yeshiva University, New York, NY; Jerry W. Cox, Mount Vernon, KY; David Eldridge, Eldridge & Blakney, PC, Knoxville, TN.