Most lawyers are reputable. We sincerely try to do all we can on behalf of our clients. We value our good reputation. We want to do all we can to resolve the difficulties which have arisen between you and the lawyer about whom you have the complaint.

We know that only a few lawyers engage in misconduct; it is our responsibility to do something about it. Even when there has been no unethical conduct, but only a misunderstanding, we want very much to clear up the misunderstanding. The procedures established by The Mississippi Bar and adopted by the Supreme Court of Mississippi for dealing with your complaint are designed to provide a thorough review of the matter and to resolve it in a way which is fair both to you and the lawyer involved. 

All lawyers promise when they enter the practice of law to uphold the law and to be guided by the rules of ethics adopted by the Supreme Court of Mississippi, known as the Rules of Professional Conduct. Lawyers who violate these professional standards are subject to discipline.

However, lawyers are human. Some are more competent than others. Sometimes a lawyer makes a mistake. If it causes a loss, the client may be able to recover the loss from the lawyer in a court of law. However, a mistake or error in judgment is not unethical conduct. A lawyer may be disciplined only for violating the standards of professional conduct.

Discipline of a lawyer must be considered very carefully since it may drastically affect the lawyer's career, reputation and ability to earn a living. You can understand therefore, that it takes more than a claim of unethical conduct to justify the imposition of discipline. It takes evidence - proof of unethical conduct - to justify discipline of a lawyer, just as it takes proof before you or any member of society may be penalized for wrongdoing.

Filing a complaint of unprofessional conduct against a Mississippi lawyer is a serious matter. It immediately puts into action the investigative and judicial processes of The Mississippi Bar. By law, the Bar is an arm of the Supreme Court of Mississippi which receives and investigates complaints alleging unethical conduct by lawyers licensed in Mississippi. The lawyer inevitably suffers from the accusation, regardless of whether any misconduct is ultimately found. But, if you believe the complaint is well-founded, by all means make it! A complaint cannot be withdrawn once it has been received in this office.

On the other hand, if you feel that the complaint may be the result of inadequate communication - lack of sufficient agreement or some misunderstanding - it may be that the problem can best be solved by a frank talk with the lawyer. Explain your dissatisfaction, and ask for a full explanation of the matter involved. Such discussion will often eliminate or lead to a solution of the problem.  

You can expect that your complaint will receive prompt and full attention.

You can expect that every attempt will be made to deal with your complaint in a manner which is fair both to you and to the lawyer about whom you complained.

You can expect to receive written notice of the final decision concerning your complaint.

The Mississippi Bar's complaint procedure is designed to provide an orderly and just way to deal with complaints against an attorney. We sincerely hope that the problem which gave rise to your complaint will be resolved in a manner which you find to be both effective and fair.  

You should not expect your complaint to be decided just on what you say or claim to have happened. Nor in fairness to you, can the attorney about whom you complain expect the matter to be decided just on the basis of his or her version of what happened. The final decision depends upon the weight of all the available evidence and testimony.

You should not expect to receive any money or to recover any losses because of your complaint. You must seek recovery of any money or property loss you may claim was caused by a lawyer from that lawyer. The Mississippi Bar complaint procedure is limited to the question of a lawyer's ethical fitness to practice law.

You should not expect The Mississippi Bar to give you legal advice or legal services either in place of the services you expected from your attorney or against your attorney. The Bar may only act to enforce the Rules of Professional Conduct upon Mississippi lawyers. 

It costs you nothing to file a complaint against a Mississippi lawyer. However, you should be prepared to submit documents to The Mississippi Bar and to appear at any hearings before the General Counsel at your own expense. If there is a trial before a Complaint Tribunal, you may be reimbursed for travel to the place of the trial. The Mississippi Bar will pay the cost and expenses of the investigation of your complaint and the prosecution of any Formal Complaint. If the attorney is disciplined by either the Complaint Tribunal or the Supreme Court of Mississippi, the lawyer may be ordered to repay The Mississippi Bar the costs incurred by the Bar in investigating and prosecuting the complaint.

It is difficult to project how long it will take to deal with any particular complaint. The time required depends on what is involved in the complaint and whether or not the facts are in dispute. Many complaints are resolved within sixty days, others may take from four to eight months and some complicated complaints, particularly those which go to a Complaint Tribunal, may take two years. In all instances, your complaint will be handled as quickly as the particular facts and circumstances allow.

In an investigation by the General Counsel, you will be asked to give testimony. However, the hearing before the General Counsel is not a trial even though you will be under oath and will be questioned by the General Counsel and by the attorney. If you wish, you may have your own lawyer come to the investigatory hearing and question you as well as any witnesses who may appear. Except in unusual circumstances, the hearing before the General Counsel will take place in Jackson, Mississippi, and you and your witnesses as well as the witnesses for the attorney will be asked to come to the hearing voluntarily.

If the Committee on Professional Responsibility instructs the General Counsel to file a Formal Complaint, there will be a trial before a Complaint Tribunal. A Complaint Tribunal is composed of three lawyers, one of which is a judge, appointed by the Supreme Court of Mississippi. The Tribunal acts according to the rules and the laws pertaining to Chancery Courts in Mississippi. In most cases, you will be expected to testify at the trial. Of course, witnesses on your behalf and on behalf of the attorney will also be heard at the trial and the attorney or his lawyer along with General Counsel will have the opportunity to examine or cross-examine all witnesses, including yourself, who appear before the Complaint Tribunal.

At the conclusion of the trial, the Tribunal will make a decision as to what action should be taken. The Tribunal may dismiss the case without any discipline, or it may issue a private or public reprimand to the lawyer, or it may suspend or disbar the lawyer from the practice of law. Decisions of the Complaints Tribunal are appealable to the Supreme Court of Mississippi. Once the Tribunal or Court's decision becomes final, you will be notified. 

When the committee first reviews General Counsel's report, it will decide whether or not the complaint should be dismissed, referred to General Counsel for additional investigation, or referred to General Counsel for filing of a Formal Complaint. The Committee will dismiss your complaint upon its first review if it determines that there has been no unprofessional or unethical conduct by the attorney. If the Committee feels that it needs additional information it may send the complaint back to General Counsel for further investigation. If that decision is made, you and the attorney will be notified by the Committee and soon thereafter, you will receive an additional request for information and notice of any hearings which may be held.

The attorney will be given a copy of all information obtained in the course of investigating your complaint. The attorney will be given the opportunity to respond to General Counsel's reports and the other information presented.

After General Counsel has conducted an investigation, the report will be sent to the Committee on Professional Responsibility and the attorney. After the Committee reviews the report, it may dismiss the complaint if it determines that the complaint is without merit. If the Committee finds a major ethical violation which does not warrant disciplinary action but which should not be dismissed as being without merit, the Committee may issue a letter admonishing the attorney. The admonishment is not considered discipline but the attorney has the right to request that formal proceedings be held to determine whether or not the attorney acted unethically.

If the Committee decides that the attorney may be guilty of unprofessional or unethical conduct which may warrant some form of discipline, the Committee will direct General Counsel to file a Formal Complaint with the Supreme Court of Mississippi.

Regardless of what final decisions the Committee on Professional Responsibility may make, you will be given notice in writing of the decision.

The Committee on Professional Responsibility is composed of six volunteer lawyers who have been carefully selected because of their sense of professional responsibility. Members of the committee are appointed by the President of The Mississippi Bar.

The Committee on Professional Responsibility must review each complaint which is filed with The Mississippi Bar. After a complaint has been filed, it cannot be dismissed or withdrawn by you. All complaints must be disposed of by the Committee on Professional Responsibility.

Your complaint and the attorney's response is then reviewed by the General Counsel's Office of The Mississippi Bar. The Office of the General Counsel may conduct an investigation and you or the attorney may be asked to provide additional information. There may also be an investigatory hearing in which you may be asked to testify. General Counsel will then submit the complaint together with the attorney's response, General Counsel's report and the transcripts, if any, from the hearings, to the Committee on Professional Responsibility of The Mississippi Bar.  

Yes. The lawyer you complain against is normally sent a copy of the complaint as soon as it is received by The Mississippi Bar. By doing so, the attorney is given an opportunity to answer your complaint. Allowing the attorney to answer the complaint is helpful in a number of ways. For example, there may only be a communication problem between you and the attorney and the complaint may help to clear up the problem. Also, by allowing the attorney an opportunity to respond, the Committee on Professional Responsibility can make a more informed and knowledgeable decision when it reviews your complaint. 

You may file a complaint against a Mississippi lawyer by contacting The Mississippi Bar. You should call or write The Mississippi Bar to request a complaint form. The address and telephone number are listed elsewhere in this brochure. The Mississippi Bar will be happy to furnish you a form on which your complaint can be written.

A complaint must be signed by the complaining party and contain the name, address, and phone number of the complainant; the name and address of the accused attorney; all important information upon which you base the complaint; a listing of all witnesses together with their addresses and phone numbers, if known. It should be typewritten or printed in black ink to be sure that it is readable and can be copied. If letters, agreements, or other documents are involved, copies should be included if possible.

The complaint, when initially submitted should be as complete as possible. Conclusions should be avoided unless evidence is presented to support the conclusion. 

The purpose of The Mississippi Bar complaint procedure is to discipline a lawyer if it is deserved. Discipline is imposed after a fair and thorough investigation.

The Mississippi Bar does not and cannot render legal services or give legal advice to any person making a complaint.

Furthermore, any loss the client may have sustained as a result of the matter involved cannot be recovered through disciplinary proceedings. The lawyer may be punished, but if the complaining party has suffered financial or property loss, his or her rights must be enforced by the usual legal methods against the person responsible for the loss.  

Fee disputes generally are handled by a separate Bar procedure since they usually do not involve questions of ethics or professional conduct. The appropriate Committee is the Resolution of Fee Dispute Committee.

Most fee disputes result from a lack of understanding by the client of the basis for the charges and of what goes into the charges for a lawyer's services. The lawyer may be at fault because of a failure to make the client aware of what is involved. Clients are often reluctant or embarrassed to discuss fees with their lawyers. They should not be. Under the Rules, the lawyer has an obligation to discuss fees with the client.

When the client and the lawyer are unable to reach an understanding and there is a controversy over fees, the matter, like any other dispute over the value of goods or services, may be resolved in a court of law. However, if there is a dispute over fees in addition of unprofessional conduct, a petition may be filed with the Bar. The Resolution of Fee Dispute Committee will handle this type of dispute. 

Discipline of lawyers in Mississippi can range from a private reprimand to a public reprimand, suspension from the practice of law, or disbarment. Only a Complaint Tribunal or the Supreme Court may impose discipline against an attorney.