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NEW YORK STATE BAR ASSOCIATIONCommittee on
Professional Ethics Opinion #229 - 02/25/1972 (8-72)
Topic: Comment to News Media on Pending Criminal Litigation
Digest: A lawyer should limit his comments concerning pending
criminal litigation to the public record
Code: Canon 7; DR 7-107
QUESTION
May a lawyer comment to the press on a pending motion to disqualify a
grand jury which has indicted his client?
OPINION
A lawyer should represent his client zealously, within the bounds of
the law, including the questioning of any impropriety within the
judicial system. Canon 7. However, such representation should occur
within the court room and not in the newspaper.
It is better to avoid any ex-parte statement even in extreme cases.
Drinker, Legal Ethics 70 (1953).
A lawyer or law firm associated with the prosecution or defense of a
criminal matter shall not make or participate in making an extra
judicial statement that a reasonable person would expect to be
disseminated by means of public communication that relates to issues of
the case, except that he may quote from or refer without comment to
public records of the court in the case. DR 7-107.
Related Files
Opinion 229 (Adobe PDF File)
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