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    Wisconsin Lawyer
    December 01, 1997

    Wisconsin Lawyer December 1997: Civility Rules Need Teeth, So Say Survey Respondents

    Civility rules need teeth, so say survey respondents

    For Milwaukee attorney Karri Fritz-Klaus, the findings on civility in the 1997 Bench-Bar Survey stir feelings of déjà vu. "One of the primary projects the Bench-Bar Committee has been involved with in years past is the civility rules," notes Fritz-Klaus, immediate past chair of the committee and a current member. "The need for standards for civility and decorum came out of a previous survey we did in which we asked, 'Is there a problem out there, and is it getting worse?' In fact, those respondents indicated it was getting worse."

    SCR 62.02(3) Specifically Targets Lawyers

    Lawyers shall do all of the following:

    (a) Make all reasonable efforts to reach informal agreement on preliminary and procedural matters.

    (b) Attempt expeditiously to reconcile differences through negotiation, without needless expense and waste of time.

    (c) Abstain from pursuing or opposing discovery arbitrarily or for the purpose of harassment or undue delay.

    (d) If an adversary is entitled to assistance, information or documents, provide them to the adversary without unnecessary formalities.

    (e) Abstain from knowingly deceiving or misleading another lawyer or the court.

    (f) Clearly identify for the court and other counsel changes that he or she has made in documents submitted to him or her by counsel or by the court.

    (g) Act in good faith and honor promises and commitments to other lawyers and to the court.

    Because of that finding, the Bench-Bar Committee urged the State Bar Board of Governors to advocate for new civility rules. "One of the biggest obstacles we had to deal with was the enforcement mechanism," Fritz-Klaus recalls. "The board was very clear that they did not want an enforcement mechanism, period."

    In the end, the Bar and the Wisconsin Judicial Conference jointly petitioned the Wisconsin Supreme Court to adopt new - but voluntary - standards of professional courtesy and decorum. The supreme court approved the new civility rules, spelled out in SCR chapter 62, which apply to all parties appearing in court: judges, court commissioners, lawyers, staff and the public. The rules touch on attire, demeanor, punctuality and cooperation on court matters. SCR 62.02(1) forbids "conduct that may be characterized as uncivil, abrasive, abusive, hostile or obstructive."

    SCR chapter 62 took effect in June 1996. A year later, nearly three-fourths of respondents to the 1997 Bench-Bar Survey believe the rules should not remain voluntary. (See accompanying article for additional details.)

    "I think of all the questions in this survey," says Madison attorney Donald Leo Bach, who chaired the Survey Subcommittee and is current chair of the Bench-Bar Committee and of the Survey Subcommittee, "the key questions are the ones on civility. What this survey is telling us is that lawyers and judges believe lack of civility is still a problem, and that we have to put teeth into the new rules through some type of enforcement mechanism."


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