Ethics

 From Immigration Law Prof comes news of a Rebellious Lawyer Conference in New Mexico.  The term, "rebellious lawyering" comes from the influential (but, sadly, hard to find and now quite expensive) book by Prof. Gerald Lopez.  Ethics issues will include:

"Today?s environment is permeated with ethical dilemmas.  On a daily basis hard questions arise: What exactly can individual lawyers, bar organizations, and communities do as increasing numbers of lawyers and notarios abandon clients facing deportation proceedings?  Can lawyers train immigrants to advocate for themselves without fearing accusations of encouraging or supporting the unlicensed practice of law?  What advice should lawyers give health and other service providers confronted with policies restricting the help they can provide immigrants in need? Can local governments and their police opt out of Secure Communities? Can border patrol officers refuse to participate in programs that prove deliberately indifferent to the lives and well-being of people crossing the border? What legally can be done about growing anti-immigrant vigilantism? Yet where exactly do we look for guidance and support when there is a big mismatch between the codes of professional responsibility and many dimensions of on-the-ground rebellious work? And what does it mean, especially in today?s hostile environment, to develop a compelling rhetoric and rationale for ?ethical borders?? In mundane and bigger-than-life moments, the very idea of morally principled practices has been put into issue ? and mocked ? by those who espouse ?law and order? in order to ?purify? the United States of undocumented immigrants."