Facebook Post Draws Bar Charges

The Illinois Administrator has filed a two-count complaint against an attorney.

The first count alleges dishonesty and lack of diligence in an immigration matter. Further, it is stated that Respondent is suspended for failure to complete CLE requirements.

But it was Count Two that caught my eye in particular

On or about January 29, 2024, after reading an article in the January 2024 Illinois Bar Journal in which Judge Ramona Sullivan discussed limited scope representation, Respondent made a post to his Facebook page about Judge Sullivan that stated, in part, the following:

“Judge Ramona Sullivan of the Urbana Illinois Circuit Court is a traitor to the Constitution of the United States and should be immediately disbarred. Allowing fetid scum like this to remain on the bench undermines the very principles of [j]ustice in this state. No single lawyer has done more to damage the integrity of the legal profession in Illinois than this sorry excuse for a lawyer, except maybe this scumbag [J.F.] I used to work for, but that’s another story.”

Respondent’s statement…was false or he made it with reckless disregard to its truth or falsity because Judge Sullivan is not a traitor to the Constitution of the United States.

Respondent knew at the time he made the statement…above, that it was false or made with reckless disregard as to its truth or falsity.

The post allegedly violates Illinois Rules 8.2(a) and 8.4(c). 

Are opinions protected by the First Amendment?

Are attorneys who have posted and/or published similar views about justices of the United States Supreme Court subject to professional sanction?

I have long held the opinion that Illinois grossly over-enforces Rule 8.2(a) and am grateful that my own jurisdiction – the District of Columbia – did not adopt the Rule. (Mike Frisch)