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Judge's order requiring an ethics probe of Hillary Clinton's lawyers is overturned

A Maryland judge had no jurisdiction to order an ethics probe of three lawyers for Hillary Clinton, Maryland’s top court has ruled.



The Maryland Court of Appeals ruled against lawyer Ty Clevenger, who wanted ethics authorities to investigate any role of the lawyers in deleting emails from her private server. Law360 covered the opinion, while the Legal Profession Blog has opinion highlights.

The appeals court ruled it is the only court in the state that has original jurisdiction over attorney disciplinary matters. “Jurisdiction is not a flashy or glamorous area of the law,” the court said. “What it lacks in luster, however, it makes up for in fundamental importance in our legal system.”

Clevenger had sought a writ of mandamus in the Circuit Court for Anne Arundel County after the Maryland Attorney Grievance Commission refused to investigate. The commission told Clevenger it was refusing his request because he had no personal knowledge of the allegations and was not an aggrieved party or client. Clevenger lives in New York but has a Texas law license.

Judge Paul Harris Jr. ordered the investigation over the objections of ethics authorities. The appeals court said the judge “lacked jurisdiction to consider, let alone to grant, the petition for writ of mandamus.”

Clevenger told Law360 in a statement he filed the bar grievances “to illustrate the double standards and political favoritism among bar prosecutors” that can benefit Republicans and Democrats in differing jurisdictions.

“If you are a lawyer with the right political connections, you can get away with almost anything,” he said. “Today’s decision by the Maryland Court of Appeals only reinforces that point.”