The Supreme Court of South Carolina
Re: Proposed Rule Revisions Submitted by the Office of Commission Counsel
Appellate Case No. 2015-000504
ORDER
On behalf of the Commission on Lawyer Conduct and the Commission on Judicial Conduct, the Office of Commission Counsel has submitted a number of proposed rule amendments to various South Carolina Appellate Court Rules that involve lawyer and judicial discipline and the Rules of Professional Conduct.
We grant the proposed amendments that: (1) add Commission Counsel to the persons who may communicate with Disciplinary Counsel regarding a matter; (2) clarify that the Commission on Lawyer Conduct or the Commission on Judicial Conduct may direct Disciplinary Counsel to disclose certain information; and (3) delete an incorrect reference in the comments to Rule 3.5, RPC, Rule 407, SCACR. We decline to adopt the remainder of the proposed rule amendments.
Pursuant to Article V, § 4, of the South Carolina Constitution, we hereby amend Rules 407, 413, and 502, SCACR, as set forth in the attachment to this order.
These amendments are effective immediately.
s/Jean H. Toal C.J. s/Costa M. Pleicones J. s/Donald W. Beatty J. s/John W. Kittredge J. s/Kaye G. Hearn J. |
Columbia, South Carolina
November 12, 2015
Rule 11, RLDE, Rule 413, SCACR, is amended to provide:
RULE 11
EX PARTE CONTACTS
Members of the Commission and Commission counsel shall not engage in ex parte communications regarding a case, except that before making a determination to file formal charges in a case pursuant to Rule 19(d)(4), Commission counsel and members of the investigative panel assigned to that case may communicate with disciplinary counsel as required to perform their duties in accordance with these rules, and the chair and vice-chair may entertain requests for permissive disclosure pursuant to Rule 12(c) made by disciplinary counsel without notice to the lawyer. Where disciplinary counsel makes a request to the chair or vice-chair pursuant to either Rule 12(c) or 19(b) without notice to the lawyer, the request shall so state and set forth the reason that notice is not being given. Ex parte communications shall include any communication which would be prohibited by Section 3B(7) of the Code of Judicial Conduct, Rule 501, SCACR, if engaged in by a judge.
Rule 11, RJDE, Rule 502, SCACR, is amended to provide:
RULE 11. EX PARTE CONTACTS
Members of the Commission and Commission counsel shall not engage in ex parte communications regarding a case, except that before making a determination to file formal charges in a case pursuant to Rule 19(d)(4), Commission counsel and members of the investigative panel assigned to that case may communicate with disciplinary counsel as required to perform their duties in accordance with these rules and the chair and vice chair may entertain requests for permissive disclosure pursuant to Rule 12(c) made by disciplinary counsel without notice to the judge. Where disciplinary counsel makes a request to the chair or vice chair pursuant to either Rule 12(c) or 19(b) without notice to the judge, the request shall so state and set forth the reason that notice is not being given. Ex parte communications shall include any communication which would be prohibited by Section 3B(7) of the Code of Judicial Conduct, Rule 501, SCACR, if engaged in by a judge.
Rule 12(c), RLDE, Rule 413, SCACR, is amended to provide:
(c) Permissive Disclosure by Commission. The Commission may, however, disclose information, or direct disciplinary counsel to disclose information, at any stage of the proceedings:
. . . .
Rule 12(c), RJDE, Rule 502, SCACR, is amended to provide:
(c) Permissive Disclosure by Commission. The Commission may, however, disclose information, or direct disciplinary counsel to disclose information, at any stage of the proceedings:
. . . .
Comment 1 to Rule 3.5, RPC, Rule 407, SCACR, is amended to provide:
[1] Many forms of improper influence upon a tribunal are proscribed by criminal law. Others are specified in the Code of Judicial Conduct, Rule 501, SCACR, with which an advocate should be familiar. A lawyer is required to avoid contributing to a violation of such provisions. The South Carolina version of paragraph (a) differs from the Model Rule in its reference to a "member of the jury venire" rather than "prospective juror" since any person technically could be the latter.