Local Rules LR83.58.3. Upon proper request of a tribunal or other authority empowered to investigate or act upon the conduct of lawyers or judges, a lawyer possessing information not otherwise protected as a confidence by these rules or by law concerning another lawyer or a judge shall reveal fully such information. Self-regulation of the legal profession requires that members of the profession initiate disciplinary investigation when they know of a violation of the rules of professional conduct.
Lawyers have a similar obligation with respect to judicial misconduct.
An apparently isolated violation may indicate a pattern of misconduct that only a disciplinary investigation can uncover. Reporting a violation is especially important where the victim is unlikely to discover the offense. A report about misconduct is not required where it would involve violation of LR83.51.6. However, a lawyer should encourage a client to consent to disclosure where prosecution would not substantially prejudice the client s interests. If a lawyer were obliged to report every violation of the rules, the failure to report any violation would itself be a professional offense.