Chamberlain♦McHaney in the News: The following article appeared in this week’s Texas Lawyer Magazine:
Swearing to Behave
A bill to require new lawyers to swear to behave with integrity and civility has sailed through the Texas Legislature and landed on Gov. Greg Abbott’s desk. Lawmakers in the House and Senate both voted unanimously to pass Senate Bill 534 without changes from the filed version. Abbott received the bill on May 5 but hadn’t yet taken action as of presstime. “The principle of civility is a cornerstone of the legal profession. The revisions to the attorney oath called for in Senate Bill 534 impress upon new lawyers who are taking the attorney oath the importance of civility, and underscore the value it brings to their conduct and their dealings,” the bill’s author, Sen. Kirk Watson, D-Austin, said in a statement. The bill would add a line to the new lawyer oath for a lawyer to swear to “conduct oneself with integrity and civility in dealing and communicating with the court and all parties.” Watson made it clear during the legislative process that his bill wouldn’t allow someone to sue uncivil attorneys who broke the oath. The Texas Chapters of the American Board of Trial Advocates brought the idea to lawmakers and lobbied to pass SB 534. Tex-ABOTA president David Chamberlain wrote in an email, “SB 534 is the embodiment of our ongoing commitment in Texas to civility and integrity in the practice of law. We hope other states will follow our lead and adopt a similar measure.” If Abbott signs SB 534, the new oath would go into effect on Sept. 1. But Tex-ABOTA plans an event later this year for other attorneys to take the oath voluntarily, Chamberlain noted.
Read more: http://www.texaslawyer.com/id=1202725827734/Inadmissible-Pandering-to-Idiots#ixzz3ZqrySuJg