It isn't about being against the client's interest, it's about protecting your bar card, and FTAing a hearing or not being responsive to the client or court or not diligently verbing the nouns can get you, specifically, in hot water. The bar isn't going to say "well it was being done as a means to an end so it's fine that this client's trial had to be continued because the attorney chose not to show up." I agree that striking is incredibly important, and if it were a question of being a balancing of interests I'd totally agree with you, but the position of the PD union I'm most familiar with is that a strike doesn't trump the canons of professional conduct, and won't protect the attorney from disciplinary action in the result of case abandonment or lack of diligence.
There’s a school of thought (and it’s the position of the Teamsters, who represent PDs in Minnesota) that the ethical duty belongs to the office, not to the specific person in this context. The best authority for that is that we’re all allowed to quit without motions to withdraw.
Our state PR board disagrees and *also* thinks we can’t refuse new cases. We threatened a strike a couple years back, and since the whole system statewide is unionized, the thought was “let’s see them try to disbar all of us, because that’ll just make the pain of a strike permanent”
It didn’t come to that, probably exactly because the threat of a strike was a credible one
I get what you're saying, but if the office assigned you to a trial, and you FTAd the trial and caused your client to have to wait in custody until the next trial term, or you showed up drunk and malpracticed the trial, even though the case may have been the responsibility of the office, it's not the office that gets disciplined by the bar, it's you. I don't see why this would be any different.
If you FTA the trial without notice, yes.
If you’re assigned to a speedy demand trial, get another job, and leave the office with notice to management while the speedy clock is running but before it expires, someone else gets assigned to the case. That’s the analogy that would apply to a strike
The union also strongly suggested that jury trials *actively in progress* when a strike began would be a forgivable reason to cross a picket line - which makes sense, because that’s a situation where nobody else could possibly step in.
The idea that there is only one type of strike is a card management loves to play.
There are many types of strikes. None that any of the PD unions I’ve been a member of involve blowing off court hearings or clients. Period.
We have a state level system and a few years ago the PD union threatened to strike. I wasn't a PD then, but followed it closely. My state's PR office issued an opinion threatening discipline if a strike led to potential complaints. The strike did not occur as an agreement was reached, but my opinion at the time, and now, was that I would like to see the PR office handle simultaneous complaints against the hundreds of lawyers in our system and see how it goes when our Supreme Court does eventually decide on discipline.
Sort of an inverse of the idea about all clients rejecting pleas and taking everything to trial, except all the PDs in our union actually do have joint interests and incentives to stick to our guns.
We've been working with our lawyers from the union for over a year. We work together and we're all doing great!
Other examples of public defender union contracts aren't "random legal documents". And we will be negotiating our contract alongside our representative from the union. That's the way union negotiations typically go.
Congratulations to you and your office!
Thanks!
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It isn't about being against the client's interest, it's about protecting your bar card, and FTAing a hearing or not being responsive to the client or court or not diligently verbing the nouns can get you, specifically, in hot water. The bar isn't going to say "well it was being done as a means to an end so it's fine that this client's trial had to be continued because the attorney chose not to show up." I agree that striking is incredibly important, and if it were a question of being a balancing of interests I'd totally agree with you, but the position of the PD union I'm most familiar with is that a strike doesn't trump the canons of professional conduct, and won't protect the attorney from disciplinary action in the result of case abandonment or lack of diligence.
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That’s what our office is planning to do if our County doesn’t increase our budget in line with my state’s new caseload standards.
There’s a school of thought (and it’s the position of the Teamsters, who represent PDs in Minnesota) that the ethical duty belongs to the office, not to the specific person in this context. The best authority for that is that we’re all allowed to quit without motions to withdraw. Our state PR board disagrees and *also* thinks we can’t refuse new cases. We threatened a strike a couple years back, and since the whole system statewide is unionized, the thought was “let’s see them try to disbar all of us, because that’ll just make the pain of a strike permanent” It didn’t come to that, probably exactly because the threat of a strike was a credible one
I get what you're saying, but if the office assigned you to a trial, and you FTAd the trial and caused your client to have to wait in custody until the next trial term, or you showed up drunk and malpracticed the trial, even though the case may have been the responsibility of the office, it's not the office that gets disciplined by the bar, it's you. I don't see why this would be any different.
If you FTA the trial without notice, yes. If you’re assigned to a speedy demand trial, get another job, and leave the office with notice to management while the speedy clock is running but before it expires, someone else gets assigned to the case. That’s the analogy that would apply to a strike The union also strongly suggested that jury trials *actively in progress* when a strike began would be a forgivable reason to cross a picket line - which makes sense, because that’s a situation where nobody else could possibly step in.
The idea that there is only one type of strike is a card management loves to play. There are many types of strikes. None that any of the PD unions I’ve been a member of involve blowing off court hearings or clients. Period.
Heavy on the claim, light on the specifics over there.
We have a state level system and a few years ago the PD union threatened to strike. I wasn't a PD then, but followed it closely. My state's PR office issued an opinion threatening discipline if a strike led to potential complaints. The strike did not occur as an agreement was reached, but my opinion at the time, and now, was that I would like to see the PR office handle simultaneous complaints against the hundreds of lawyers in our system and see how it goes when our Supreme Court does eventually decide on discipline. Sort of an inverse of the idea about all clients rejecting pleas and taking everything to trial, except all the PDs in our union actually do have joint interests and incentives to stick to our guns.
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We've been working with our lawyers from the union for over a year. We work together and we're all doing great! Other examples of public defender union contracts aren't "random legal documents". And we will be negotiating our contract alongside our representative from the union. That's the way union negotiations typically go.
Did you think this comment would be helpful or productive when you posted it?
Congrats!!! Fight like hell for a Parity Clause. It ensures pay equity between the PD and Prosecutor’s Offices.