Tuesday • January 23, 2007

Criticism of Deckard appointment misunderstands the position of KBA Executive Director

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I am saddened, but not surprised, to see that some commentators have been quick to raise issues about the selection of Jim Deckard as the new Executive Director of the Kentucky Bar Association. In particular, they have suggested that Mr. Deckard may be tempted to "politicize" the position of Executive Director, or to "influence" the KBA's independent investigation into the conduct of lawyers who were involved in the merit system controversy, merely because he has previously served as Chief Justice Lambert's chief of staff and, more recently, as General Counsel to Governor Fletcher (after John Roach was appointed to the Supreme Court). See, for example, "Deckard is new KBA President," a blog post by WHAS reporter Mark Hebert, and "Deckard wrong choice: Lambert a bad influence on selection of KBA chief," an editorial in the Lexington Herald-Leader.

The KBA Executive Director is not a decision-maker in the attorney disciplinary process.  Investigations are conducted by the Office of Bar Counsel under the direction of the Inquiry Commission, an independent body appointed by the Chief Justice. Following an investigation, the Inquiry Commission decides whether any formal charges of misconduct should be issued. If any such charges are issued, an evidentiary hearing is conducted by an independent Trial Commissioner and the case is then reviewed by the KBA Board of Governors and the Supreme Court. The Inquiry Commission includes non-lawyer members, as does the Board of Governors when it sits to consider disciplinary cases.

During my five years of service in the Office of Bar Counsel, first as Chief Deputy Bar Counsel and then as Chief Bar Counsel, KBA Executive Director Bruce Davis never attempted to influence or interfere with that process in any way. To suggest that Mr. Deckard might attempt to do so is an affront to his personal integrity.  Likewise, to suggest that he could actually have any impact on disciplinary decisions is an affront to the integrity of the people who actually make those decisions.

Turning to the suggestion that Mr. Deckard might "politicize" the relationship between the KBA and the Supreme Court, the KBA Executive Director is not in a position to make unilateral, unsupervised decisions about the policy or program initiatives of the KBA. The Executive Director is the senior staff person at the KBA.  He answers to the KBA Board of Governors, which is comprised of eighteen lawyers elected by members of the Bar throughout the state (two Board members elected from each of the seven Supreme Court districts, plus four officers of the Board who are elected by the entire membership), along with the Chair of the Young Lawyers Section.

During my service in the Office of Bar Counsel, it was my privilege to attend almost every meeting of the Board of Governors. I witnessed first-hand the high level of attention that the Board devotes to the management and oversight of the KBA. To suggest that Mr. Deckard would "politicize" the relationship between the KBA and the Supreme Court is an affront to the Board of Governors, as well as Mr. Deckard.

As I indicated in my previous post about Mr. Deckard's appointment, I had the pleasure of working with him, in his capacity as Chief Justice Lambert's chief of staff, during my own service at the KBA.  For example, we both attended meetings of the KBA Rules Committee, a committee of the Board of Governors which considers changes to the Supreme Court Rules and submits proposed rule changes to the Supreme Court. During those meetings, I never once saw him attempt to influence the judgment of the Board members or manipulate the activity of that committee. To suggest that he might behave differently when he is no longer a representative of the Chief Justice, but instead an employee of the Board, is utter nonsense.

Indeed, if the KBA Board of Governors had experienced anything of that sort during Mr. Deckard's service as Chief Justice Lambert's chief of staff, one assumes that it would not have chosen him from a field of twenty-nine applicants. I know who some of those applicants were (contrary to popular belief, I was not one of them). They were highly qualified for the position as well, but I feel certain that they share my respect for Mr. Deckard and my confidence that he will bring a high level of competence and integrity to the position of KBA Executive Director.