Professional Responsibility & Ethics

The American Bar Association's current ethical code was promulgated in 1983. The majority of states and the District of Columbia base their ethics rules on these Model Rules. Sources of the Model Rules of Professional Conduct include the following:

The ABA Model Code of Professional Responsibility was originally adopted in 1969. It was amended several times with the last amendments adopted in 1980. In August 1983, the ABA replaced the entire Model Code with the Model Rules of Professional Conduct.

Although some state ethics rules still follow the Model Code, the majority of states now base their ethics rules on the Model Rules.

The American Bar Association adopted its first code of ethics, Canons of Professional Ethics, in 1908.

The Model Code of Judicial Conduct establishes standards for the ethical conduct of judges and judicial candidates.