Iowa attorney discipline procedures will not change

The Iowa Supreme Court announced Friday that it has considered and rejected a procedure proposed by the Office of Professional Regulation that would have allowed an attorney to consent to a voluntary temporary suspension of his or her law license without public disclosure of the reasons for the suspension.

The Office of Professional Regulation suggested the proposal as one of several steps to reduce delays and strengthen the effectiveness of the attorney discipline process, according to a new release issued by court officials.

According to the court's state, the Supreme Court agreed that the attorney disciplinary process should be expedited so it is more effective.

Even so, the court believes that the public should always be informed of the reasons for the suspension of an attorney's law license because the lawyer may have his or her license restored after the suspension period has run. In this situation, the interest of the public in having information about the attorney's misconduct outweighs the need to expedite ethics prosecutions, the court statement said.

In addition, the court is considering changing a long-standing rule that allows the reasons for a voluntary revocation of a lawyer's license to remain confidential. The rule exists to protect the public by quickly revoking the license of an attorney who should no longer practice law.

In addition, the court asked the Office of Professional Regulation to suggest other ways to improve the attorney disciplinary process. Any proposals that the court believes warrant consideration as a rule will be released for public comment before the court takes any final action.

The Office of Professional Regulation has the initial responsibility for processing public complaints of ethical violations against Iowa attorneys. Serious cases are forwarded to a grievance commission for a hearing and determination. Those cases are then ultimately reviewed by the Iowa Supreme Court, which issues a publicly available decision on each case. Those decisions are available for review at the court's website at http://www.iowacourts.gov/Supreme_Court/Opinions/.