This One Change Could Let Government Lawyers Mislead Courts

The Justice Department is now backing a proposal that critics say make it harder to hold government lawyers accountable when they mislead, even lie, the courts. Under the idea, ethics complaints against Justice Department attorneys be diverted away from independent state bar investigators and routed into the department's own internal review system. That matters because lawyers are not supposed to function like political spokespersons. They have a professional duty to tell courts the truth. According to critics, this change would weaken one of the few remaining checks on executive power, insulating government attorneys from meaningful simple outside discipline. Concern is bigger than any single brief or hearing. Judges cannot trust the government lawyers standing in front of them, then the legal system itself starts to corrode. Rely on facts, candor, and professional consequences for dishonesty. Removing these guardrails, the executive branch gains even more room to manipulate the truth without paying a price.