The Virginia State Bar has publicly reprimanded former U.S. Justice Department official Monica Goodling for her role in mixing politics and hiring decisions during the George W. Bush administration.
The action is the latest fallout from the high-profile battles that overtook the Justice Department in 2007 and led to the resignation of then-Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and his top aides, including Goodling.
A three-member bar subcommittee agreed to the public reprimand in March, according to an order being released today. The four-page order says the outcome of the disciplinary case was an “agreed disposition” that was “presented by the parties” in the case.
The subcommittee found that Goodling violated a bar rule against misconduct when she “improperly utilized political affiliation and other political considerations when making hiring decisions for career positions.” Goodling admitted to doing so while testifying before the House Judiciary Committee under oath in May 2007, the order says.
“I crossed the line of the civil service rules,” she said then, according to the order. “I believe I crossed the lines. But I didn’t mean to.”
At the time she resigned from the Justice Department, Goodling was senior counsel to Gonzales and the department liaison to the White House. According to a July 2008 internal DOJ report (PDF) on hiring practices, Goodling would ask potential hires a series of politically focused questions, such as, “Why are you a Republican?”
The Virginia bar rule in question says it is misconduct for a lawyer to “commit a criminal or deliberately wrongful act that reflects adversely on the lawyer’s honesty, trustworthiness or fitness to practice law.”
Goodling, Gonzales and other former DOJ officials have not faced criminal charges for their role in hiring decisions or in the firing of nine U.S. attorneys. In July 2010, a special prosecutor appointed by Attorney General Eric Holder Jr. concluded there was not enough evidence to pursue charges.
D. Kyle Sampson, who was Gonzales’ chief of staff, faced a bar dispute of his own, but after a long fight with admission officials, he was admitted to the D.C. Bar in December. He’s a partner in Hunton & Williams’ food and drug practice.
Goodling was not immediately available for comment today. She is working, but not as a lawyer, according to the bar order. John Dowd, a partner at Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld who has represented Goodling, declined to comment.
The disciplinary order was signed by Roger Amole, a name partner at Amole & Bray in Alexandria, Va. Amole did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Click here (PDF) for a copy of the order.
Updated at 11:51 a.m. National Law Journal photo by Diego M. Radzinschi.
That's a slap in the wrist to one of the most corrupt incidents in the politicization of justice in this country.
Posted by: JohnnyE | May 10, 2011 at 02:36 PM
I agree with Peter that VBA decision to punish Monica Goodling is a joke, but not for his partisan "something has gone wrong and the Democrats must be at fault" reasoning.
It's a joke because the VBA made a scapegoat of a relatively defenseless and inexperienced woman who did something wrong and admitted it. If the institutions of the legal profession had a dollop of guts and a larger quotient of integrity they would have disciplined the big guns --older, well connected males -- who politicized Justice Department appointments and wrote opinions justifying torture.
Perhaps that's the explanation for why the man who signed the order was not immediately available for comment. I hope some prominent legal firm -- Democrat or Republican, it doesn't matter -- will give Ms. Goodling a second chance, for no other reason than she didn't try to weasel out of her mistakes.
Frank McNeil
Posted by: Frank McNeil | May 09, 2011 at 09:46 PM
This decision is a joke! Democrats are notorious for hiring Democrats and firing Republicans. The VA bar rule does not specifically address the conduct in question and is overly broad. Anyone favoring this decision is clearly a partisan Democrat, as are clearly the VA bar authorites. This decision only makes me despise the hypocritical Democrats even more!
Posted by: Peter | May 09, 2011 at 01:00 PM
Good for her. Now for John Yoo (the author of the torture memos).
Posted by: Leslie | May 07, 2011 at 04:53 PM
At least someone has been held accountable for Bush administration misconduct . . . a rare moment indeed!
Posted by: A Thankful American | May 06, 2011 at 09:57 PM
Yes, Larry, you're right. How dare anyone question the Imperial Government of His Majesty George W. Bush. Pesky laws should not get in the way of bringing politics into places they don't belong. It's time we brought back the loyalty oath!
Posted by: Lars Andressen | May 06, 2011 at 09:45 PM
This is a political assassination, perpetrated by the Virginia Bar in broad daylight.
I hope that membership in the VBA is voluntary, because they are otherwise misusing coerced member funds for private agendas.
Posted by: Larry Gillis | May 06, 2011 at 09:10 PM
This is utterly outstanding! I am thrilled because I did not think it possible that the Virginia Bar would be advanced enough to dare o reprimand a George W. Bush legal lackey.
Karen Hedwig Backman
Posted by: Karen Hedwig Backman | May 06, 2011 at 05:40 PM