Duty to report misconduct

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The duty to report misconduct is one of the ethical duties imposed on attorneys in the United States by the rules governing professional responsibility.^[1] With certain exceptions, an attorney who becomes aware that either a fellow attorney or a judge has committed an act in violation of the rules of ethical conduct must report that violation. Failure to do so subjects the attorney failing to make the report to discipline. ^[2] The duty extends only to actual knowledge possessed by an attorney. An attorney who has a mere suspicion of misconduct is not required to report that suspicion, nor is the attorney required to conduct any sort of investigation to confirm or dispel that suspicion. The conduct at issue must rise to the level of misconduct under the rules of professional responsibility. Thus, an attorney who witnesses another attorney become intoxicated, engage in adultery, or gamble away a large sum of money is under no duty to report these acts because they are not prohibited by the rules of professional responsibility. Conduct that must be reported, on the other hand, includes matters such as breaching client confidentiality, misusing client funds, tampering with evidence, suborning perjury, offering bribes, and committing criminal acts of violence or dishonesty.^[1]