Board of Trustees Adopts Amendments to Prosecutor Ethics Rule, 071717 CABJ, CBJ - July 2017 #02

Board of Trustees adopts amendments to prosecutor ethics rule

No. 2017 #02

California Bar Journal

July 17, 2017

Categories: News Releases, Top Headlines, Ethics

The Board of Trustees of the State Bar of California on July 13 adopted amendments to a new ethics rule regarding the responsibilities of criminal prosecutors that address prosecutors' ethical disclosure obligations.

The amendments to the State Bar's Rule of Professional Conduct 5-110 ("Special Responsibilities of a Prosecutor") will go to the California Supreme Court for approval before they take effect. The amendments to Rule 5-110(D) say that a prosecutor in a criminal case shall: "Make timely disclosure to the defense of all evidence or information known to the prosecutor that the prosecutor knows or reasonably should know tends to negate the guilt of the accused, mitigate the offense, or mitigate the sentence, except when the prosecutor is relieved of this responsibility by a protective order of the tribunal[.]"

The amendments also provide further guidance on the disclosure obligations.

On May 1, the State Bar implemented the other portions of Rule 5-110 that were approved by the California Supreme Court. (Read the Supreme Court order.)

The new rule included a new...