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24 Mont. Law. 1 (1998-1999)

handle is hein.barjournals/mtlaw0024 and id is 1 raw text is: THE MONTANA

September 1998
Volume 24 #1

State Bar of Montana * Helena, Montana
Commission recommends discipline rules revision

By Sally K. Hilander, Editor
The Montana Lawyer
The Commission on Practice has recommended
the Supreme Court adopt numerous revisions to the
Rules for Lawyer Disciplinary Enforcement, and the
Court will receive comments from the bench, bar and
public through December 1. The rules with the pro-
posed amendments are published in their entirety
beginning on page 26.
Among the most notable proposed changes are
(1) the addition of private admonitions and proba-
tion as discipline options, and (2) a means for law-
yers with alcohol/drug addictions and other mental
or physical problems to opt for an inactive member-
ship status while they seek professional help, and
then return to active practice if they are later found
competent.
The Commission told the Court its recommenda-
tions are based on the work of the ABA Standing
SPECIAL
FEATURE            BarsFour      al Rookit
What to expect if        1
you represent a        .
client before the
Sentence Review
Division. See
Jeff Renz' article  1f    C  Cmal,       an'
on page 5.            0 1    fraA_ isioM

Committee on Professional Discipline, a review con-
ducted by a Court-appointed task force, and an
internal assessment by Commission members.
A new Rule 21, recommended by both the task
force and the ABA, would allow a lawyer to be
placed on disability inactive status if he or she is
incapacitated or declared in a court of law to be
incompetent. Without such authority, the Commis-
sion can only wait until a non-disciplinary matter
deteriorates into a disciplinary problem.
Two major recommendations of the task force
and ABA Committee are not included in the
Commission's proposed amendments: (1) The Su-
preme Court should establish an office of disciplin-
ary counsel to oversee the investigation and pros-
ecution of attorney misconduct complaints, and (2)
the Commission on Practice as a whole should be

More DISCIPLINE, page 26

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