CNN
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The California State Bar has revealed new disciplinary charges against Mr. Jean Eastman for his involvement in former President Donald Trump’s efforts to sabotage the results of the 2020 elections.
A state court attorney is filing 11 counts against Eastman, accusing him of violating various attorney’s ethics rules in several episodes, court cases, and other conduct.
Among the maneuvers targeted by the new disciplinary measures are filings in Eastman Georgia and the Supreme Court, a pressure campaign on then-Vice President Mike Pence to block congressional certification, and Eastman’s promotion of allegations of bogus voter fraud.
“There is nothing more sacred to our American democracy than free and fair elections and the peaceful transfer of power,” George Cardona, the state’s chief attorney, said in a statement. “The notice of disciplinary charges alleges that Mr. Eastman violated this duty in an effort to usurp the will of the American people and overturn the election results for the nation’s highest office — an outrageous and unprecedented attack against our democracy — for which he must be held accountable.
Eastman’s attorney, Randall Miller, said in a lengthy statement that Eastman “disputes all aspects of the lawsuit brought against him by the state bar,” and alleged that the charges were political in nature. Miller said Eastman would challenge them and present his side of the issue.
The charges say he violated a code of ethics by pushing allegations of voter fraud — in litigation, in public statements, and in other aspects of his legal work — “that he knew or showed “gross negligence by not knowing wrongly.” He is also accused of relying on legal theories he knows Or he should have known it was “fundamentally wrong” to say Pence could interfere with congressional confirmation of the 2020 results.
Eastman now faces a deadline to respond to the charges.
The proceedings will eventually go to the state bar court for determination, though the state supreme court has the final say on whether disciplinary action should be taken in the event of an attorney being suspended or disbarred.
The attorney handling the new charges said Eastman knew, or should have known, that the Pence scheme violated the Constitution, in the proposals he defended after the election.
Disciplinary filings allege that Eastman violated the Lawyers’ Code of Ethics by failing to uphold the Constitution. He is also accused of seeking to mislead the courts and immorality, including his allegations of misrepresentation.
Citing the group’s post-election lawsuit, as well as comments from members of the Trump administration, election officials, and other “reliable sources” refuting allegations of voter fraud, the disciplinary affidavits allege that Eastman knew or should have known he was claiming wrongdoing. . Election confirmations.
Eastman is the latest attorney for a Trump ally to face disciplinary action for his work on plans to overturn the election. The D.C. disciplinary panel recently made a preliminary finding that Trump’s former attorney Rudy Giuliani violated ethics rules in his election trial against Trump — though there are additional rounds of proceedings before that finding is finalized and a verdict is decided.
Jeffrey Clark, a former Justice Department attorney who promoted Trump’s efforts to overturn the election, is facing disciplinary action, for example Sidney Powell, the attorney representing the Trump campaign in a lawsuit challenging the 2020 results.
This story has been updated with a statement from Eastman’s attorney.
