Earlier this week, the 11th Circuit affirmed sanctions against an attorney, who called a judge’s findings “half-baked,” and afterwards sent an apologetic bottle of wine to his chambers with a handwritten note. Professionalism
In finding that the attorney’s First Amendment rights did not shield him from sanctions, the court noted that the attorney “has identified no authority supporting his contention that the First Amendment shields from sanctions an attorney who files an inappropriate and unprofessional pleading and then contacts a presiding judge ex parte with an offer to share a bottle of wine and ‘privately’ resolve their dispute.”
For more on the story see www.legalethicsforum.com
