Welcome!
Welcome to the Legal Ethics Roundup, a free weekly review of all things related to lawyer and judicial ethics. I’m glad you’re here, and I hope you stick around.
Who am I?
I’m Renee Jefferson, a law professor at the University of Houston. I’ve been thinking, teaching, writing, and talking about legal and judicial ethics for nearly two decades.
My writing has appeared in CNN Opinion, Politico, and The Hill, as well as in academic journals like the Fordham Law Review and the Yale Law Journal Forum, among other publications. I have been interviewed or quoted as an ethics expert by a wide range of broadcast, print, and online media outlets, including the Associated Press, MSNBC, the National Law Journal, the New York Times, NPR, Slate, the Wall Street Journal, and the Washington Post. I’m also an author of several books, including Shortlisted: Women in the Shadows of the Supreme Court and Law Democratized: A Blueprint for Solving the Justice Crisis, which hits the shelves on January 9, 2024.
What do I know about legal ethics?
Lawyer and judicial ethics (aka “legal ethics”) refers to the professional conduct norms and rules that members of the legal profession must follow. All lawyers and judges take oaths to uphold the ethics of their licenses and offices. Lawyers must follow the professional conduct rules of the state where they are licensed and where they practice. State and federal judges all follow codes of judicial conduct.
In addition to teaching and writing about ethics since 2006, I regularly am called upon to consult and testify as an ethics expert, including appearances before the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on the Judiciary and the Supreme Court of Texas. I serve as a subject matter expert for the National Conference of Bar Examiners on the Multistate Professional Responsibility Exam, and I’m a member of the West Academic Law School Advisory Board. I’m also a coauthor of the casebooks Professional Responsibility: A Contemporary Approach and Legal Ethics for the Real World: Building Skills Through Case Study. From 2014-16, I served as a reporter for the American Bar Association Presidential Commission on the Future of Legal Services, and I currently sit on the Texas Supreme Court’s Access to Justice Commission Working Group on Access to Legal Services. I’m a past-chair of the Association of American Law Schools section on Professional Responsibility, and previously co-chaired the committee on regulatory reform for the State Bar of Michigan’s 21st Century Law Practice Task Force.
Before I became an academic, I practiced law—and grappled with ethics issues regularly—at two law firms, Mayer, Brown and Hunton & Williams, and also as an assistant city attorney in Charlottesville, Virginia. I received my JD from the University of Chicago Law School.
I’ve thought deeply about these issues, and why I may not always have all the answers, I keep asking questions and look forward to exploring them here.
Why a weekly roundup?
It is not an exaggeration to say that never in the history of the United States has there ever been a greater need to understand the ethical duties of lawyers and judges and to hold them accountable to their professional obligations. Now more than ever the legal profession is in the headlines for questionable ethics, ranging from the United States Supreme Court’s unenforceable ethics code to the criminal indictment of a former president alleged to have conspired with several lawyers to overturn the results of a valid election. This roundup covers big issues like these as well as smaller—but equally important—ones. It is written for lawyers, judges, law students, academics, and anyone who cares about our democracy.
What to expect
Each week the roundup will highlight breaking news about lawyer and judicial ethics along with thoughtful analysis of key issues. Regular features will include lawyers and judges of the week, recommended reading from academics and experts, an ethics reform watch, a look back at ethics history, career opportunities, ethics in pop culture, upcoming events, and other insights.
Stay up-to-date
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Get in touch
You can reach me at legalethics@substack.com
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