RULE 8.1 BAR ADMISSION AND DISCIPLINARY MATTERS
An applicant for admission to the bar, or a lawyer in connection with a bar admission application or in connection with a disciplinary matter, shall not:
(a) knowingly make a false statement of material fact; or
(b) fail to disclose a fact necessary to correct a misapprehension known by the person to have arisen in the matter, or knowingly fail to respond to a lawful demand for information from an admissions or disciplinary authority, except that this rule does not require disclosure of information otherwise protected by Rule 1.6.
Comment
[1] The duty imposed by this Rule extends to persons seeking admission to the bar
as well as to
lawyers. Hence, if a person makes a material false statement in connection with an application
for
admission, it may be the basis for subsequent disciplinary action if the person is admitted, and in
any
event may be relevant in a subsequent admission application. The duty imposed by this Rule
applies
to a lawyer's own admission or discipline as well as that of others. Thus, it is a separate
professional
offense for a lawyer to knowingly make a misrepresentation or omission in connection with a
disciplinary investigation of the lawyer's own conduct. This Paragraph (b)
of this Rule also requires
correction of any prior misstatement in the matter that the applicant or lawyer may have
made and
affirmative clarification of any misunderstanding on the part of the admissions or disciplinary
authority of which the person involved becomes aware.
[2] This Rule is subject to the provisions of the Fifth Amendment of the United States Constitution and corresponding provisions of state constitutions. A person relying on such a provision in response to a question, however, should do so openly and not use the right of nondisclosure as a justification for failure to comply with this Rule.
[3] A lawyer representing an applicant for admission to the bar, or representing a
lawyer who is
the subject of a disciplinary inquiry or proceeding, is governed by the rules applicable to the
client-lawyer lawyer-client relationship, including Rule 1.6 and, in
some cases, Rule 3.3.
Reference: Minutes of the Professional Conduct Subcommittee of the Attorney Standards Committee on 12/13/85; Minutes of the Joint Committee on Attorney Standards on 09/24/04, 04/08/05, 06/14/05.