WP: (bush*) Judicial Nominee Practiced Law Without License in Utah

[diamond14]

Judicial Nominee Practiced Law Without License in Utah

By Carol D. Leonnig
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, June 21, 2004; Page A01


Thomas B. Griffith, President Bush's nominee for the federal appeals court in Washington, has been practicing law in Utah without a state law license for the past four years, according to Utah state officials.

Griffith, the general counsel for Brigham Young University since August 2000, had previously failed to renew his law license in Washington for three years while he was a lawyer based in the District. It was a mistake he attributed to an oversight by his law firm's staff. But that lapse in his D.C. license, reported earlier this month by The Washington Post, subsequently prevented Griffith from receiving a law license in Utah when he moved there.

A lawyer who specializes in legal ethics said Griffith's two licensing lapses should disqualify him from a lifetime appointment to one of the nation's most important federal benches, second only to the Supreme Court. "This moves it for me from the realm of negligence to the realm of willfulness," said Mark Foster, a Zuckerman Spaeder attorney who represents lawyers in ethics matters. "People who thumb their noses at the rules of the bar shouldn't be judges."

Griffith, 55, is a member of the Republican National Lawyers Association and was the lead counsel for the Senate during the impeachment trial of President Bill Clinton. Married and the father of six, he is a former partner at the D.C. firm of Wiley Rein & Fielding, whose partners served in prominent positions in past Republican administrations.


http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A56413-2004Jun20.html

[Media_Lies_Daily]

1. Couldn't happen to a nicer guy.

[grasswire]

2. WAIT!!

He was not a member of the bar when he was lead counsel for the Senate during the impeachment trial of Bill Clinton.

He did not have a license to practice law!! Shouldn't there be a mistrial or something??

[jdj]

8. God, that would be perfect timing.

It's amazing what these evil creatures get away with; who cares if they have law liscenses, who cares if Iraq and al qaeda aren't connected, who cares about the Geneva conventions... This is probably why Clinton lied about Monica initially; he grew up broke and didn't know what it was like to not be held accountable simply because of who you know and who your Daddy is.

[truthisfreedom]

9. if true, it would be a devastating blow to conservatives if this became an

issue now... imagine if bubba's impeachment could be annuled?

[neverforget]

3. Sounds qualified for a Bush nominee...idealogue, law breaking,

Republican.

[Neshanic]

4. I'm not a lawyer, but I play one on TV.

Again the staff, that pesky no good staff that the republicans always have. I am too brainless to make sure my license is current. I have to have my staff tell me; the same stupid staff that hangs out with Chimp's...you know the one that makes all his mistakes.

[PaDUer]

7. You play a lawyer on tv?

Which show?

[jdj]

5. "oversight by staff"?

Man, that's funny. It's a wonder they haven't tried to blame the 9/11 intel failures on the support staff, too.

I guess I'll just not pay taxes anymore and blame it on my dog when I get busted.

[priller]

12. Always blame it on the underlings -- always

And, btw, Cheney did blame part of 9/11 on "staff". You remember the "Air Force One is a target" bullshit they tried to use as an explanation of Bush high-tailing it across the country? When it turned out not to be true, Cheney explained it was the fault of some low-level person at the White House.

So hard to find good help these days!

[0rganism]

6. The perfect bush appointee

For Sec. of Interior? A disciple of James Watt
For National Security Advisor? An expert on the Soviet Union and cold war strategy
For Sec. of Defense? A business partner of Saddam Hussein

So what could be more appropriate for a judicial nominee than someone who's practicing law illegally?

Bravo! The Irony Administration does it again!

[uptown ruler]

10. funny, how some ppl can break the law

and others cant...


Spreading The Word
The Irony Curtain Shop

[depakid]

11. My question is why this guy hasn't been suspended

That's what happens- and rather quickly- to people who don't pay their Bar fees. Moreover, it's usually considered a crime to practice law on a suspended license- so the logical follow-up would be why hasn't he been either disciplined by either State Bar and/or sanctioned by the courts and prosecuted?

That he's being considered for the Federal Bench is beyond irony....

on edit: and btw- there's no way this guy didn't know his Bar license had lapsed- if he didn't renew it, he wouldn't have a current Bar Card.

[priller]

13. Add this to the Asst. Sec. of Health nominee

who has seriously inflated her resume (see today's Idiots).

[Moderator]

14. Duplicate

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x635183