The First Amendment and the Legal Profession: Is Silence Golden?

Abstract

There is much discussion concerning the need for civility in the legal profession and some states have added civility and courtesy provisions to their professional conduct codes in an attempt to impact the language and behavior of the legal profession. The case law seems to indicate a higher tolerance for comments that relate to the judicial conduct of the judge as opposed to what appears to be a personal attack upon the integrity of the judge. It is important to understand the perspective and standards applied within a particular jurisdiction and perhaps it is wise to consider the advice that “judges are as human as the rest of us, and it is not wise to awaken the ire of the judge.”

Keywords: First Amendment, Legal Profession, Judges, Lawyers