Below is a partial list of Rules and other relevant readings:
Mic. Relevant Rules of Professional Conduct:
Rule 1.6: Model; DC; VT (exceptions to client privilege/confidentiality mandates)
Rule 1.13: Model; DC; VT (exceptions to organizational privilege/confidentiality mandates)
Rule 3.1: Model; DC; VT (requiring good faith bases for attorney assertions)
Rule 3.2: VT (avoiding unnecessary delays in litigation)
Rule 3.3: VT (candor toward tribunal)
Rule 4.1: Model; DC; VT (prohibiting lies while representing client)
Rule 4.2: VT (communications with client represented by others)
Rule 8.3: Model; DC; VT; CA (Honor Code; CA’s strengthened in 2023); see also VT’s Judicial Rule 2.15 (essentially same, but for judges); see also 2024-10-03 Bar Counsel Blog (court may in some circumstances the the “appropriate professional authority”)
Misc. Other Relevant Reading
1993, A. Kronman, The Lost Lawyer (“Every year produces … renewed doubts about the ability of the profession to police itself”).
1995, D.C. Bar, Legal Ethics Opinion 260 (making clear that lawyers cannot threaten others to prevent ethics reporting).
1999 McDade Act (statutorily requiring DOJ attorneys based in DC to comply with DC’s Ethics Rules).
2003, ABA, Post-Enron Reforms to Rule 1.6 (exponentially expanding attorneys’ reporting obligations).
2005, M. Frisch, The Failure of Attorney Self-Regulation in D.C., 18 G’Town Jnl. of Legal Ethics325 (discussed here)
2006, DC Ct. of Appeals, Intro. to Rules of Professional Conduct (warning that Rules’ effectiveness depends on their enforcement).
2010, ABA, Resolution re. DOJ’s Under-Reporting of its attorney’s ethics violations.
2011, D.C. Bar article re. Rule 8.3 mandates (making clear that each attorney has an independent duty to report).
2013, In Re. Martin (D.C. Ct. App) (affirming that attorneys may not restrict others’ ethics reporting).
2014, Project on Gov’t. Oversight, DOJ Violations (re DOJ’s widespread failures to report violations).
2015, D. Suplee, Have Big Law Firms Lost Their Way? Law360 (discussing the degradation of law practice in recent decades)
2018, S. Brill, Tailspin, at 29-33 (chronicles the 1980’s-present degradation of legal ethics)
2019, J. Rosen, Conversations with RBG, at 190 (RBG re. NDAs and MeToo, “I hope those agreements will not be enforced by the courts” ).
2019 NDA-Related Question as posed to VT’s BEAs
2020 NDA-Related Question as posed to DC’s BEAs (and referencing similar questions posed in 2015 and 2017)