3:8 Role of the Rules of Professional Conduct

• Jurisdiction: Arizona

§ 3:8 Role of the Rules of Professional Conduct

Arizona Rule of the Supreme Court 42 sets forth the Arizona Rules of Professional Conduct. These are rules which govern the conduct of Arizona lawyers and a violation of a rule can lead to a sanction against the offending attorney by the Arizona State Bar, up to and including disbarment.

From the earliest legal malpractice lawsuits alleging negligence in Arizona, plaintiffs have argued that a lawyer should be held liable for violating a Rule of Professional Conduct, while defendants argue that the rules have little relevance to a negligence action.

The Arizona Rules of Professional Conduct “are not designed to be a basis for civil liability.”^[108] In Stanley v. McCarver,^[109] the Arizona Supreme Court stated: “(w)hile rules of professional conduct may provide evidence of how a...