Taking Ethical Obligations Seriously

Résumé du livre

Levine argues that American ethics codes, through both their substance and their underlying assumptions, contribute to the problematic nature of American legal ethics. In particular, the Model Rules of Professional Conduct fail sufficiently to mandate ethical obligations, instead permitting lawyers a degree of discretion that relegates many ethics rules to the status of optional guidelines. Moreover, the permissive nature of many rules renders their enforcement largely untenable, thus further undermining the credibility and authority of these codes as a basis for the ethical conduct of lawyers. In response to these concerns, Levine looks to the Jewish legal system. Building in part on Levine's past work, the Essay suggests that American ethics codes might begin to incorporate the notion of obligation that underlies Jewish law, including the broad imperative to exercise ethical conduct and deliberation even in the absence of clearly applicable regulations. At the same time, the Jewish legal system may provide a model for ethical adherence that relies more upon communal commitment to shared ethical values and principles than on the threat of official discipline and punishment.