Oversight Committee Recommends Suspension of Jeffrey Clark’s D.C. Bar License

On Aug. 1, a three-member disciplinary panel authorized by the District of Columbia bar determined that the bar should suspend former Justice Department lawyer Jeffrey Clark from practicing law in D.C. for two years. According to the Jan. 6 indictment against former President Donald Trump, Clark attempted to assist Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election by putting forward a proposal to convince state legislatures to appoint pro-Trump fake electors in states that President Joe Biden had won.

The panel found that Clark violated Rule 8.4(a) as applied to Rule 8.4(c) of the D.C. Bar Rules of Professional Conduct by attempting to send a letter to Georgia election officials containing “misrepresentations” about the conduct of the election in that state. But the panel rejected the claim by the D.C. bar disciplinary counsel that Clark violated Rule 8.4(a) as applied to Rule 8.4(d) because, according to the panel, “Clark did not attempt significantly to interfere with the administration of justice.”

This report comes after the committee made a preliminary finding in April that Clark violated at least one ethics rule and should be sanctioned. The D.C. Bar Board of Professional Responsibility will now review the panel’s recommendation before issuing a recommendation to the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia.

You can read the report here or below.