By Gary J. Leppla

President, Ohio State Bar Association

Do Ohioans really want a world in which citizens cannot find a lawyer to represent them? Should lawyers be intimidated in their efforts to help the clients who come to them? Obviously not. However, a recent Columbus area campaign ad may lead you to think otherwise.

The Ohio House Republican Campaign Committee is running an ad in which they demean the profession of an opposition candidate, John Carney. Mr. Carney is a lawyer. The commentary in the ad contains the suggestion that Attorney Carney did something wrong by representing doctors. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Attorney Carney’s role is to see that his client’s right to representation in our American legal system is preserved. An attack on his work as a professional, or the work of any lawyer serving clients, is an attack upon our American system of justice. This form of political attack cannot be tolerated.

The citizens of Ohio should not be misled by political attacks on lawyers who carry out their professional duties. Such attacks are examples of how far some candidates for public office, their committees and/or third party support groups are willing to go to win. It is unfortunate that in political campaigns civility and intelligence have been replaced by a mean-spirited and misleading approach to the election process that is truly unconscionable.

Most Americans understand that lawyers are often called upon to take on unpopular causes, to defend those charged even with heinous crimes, to protect the rights of those who would destroy our democracy and to see that justice is available to every defendant. Lawyers have an ethical obligation to provide representation to clients even when they know the cause is unpopular or community reaction might be adverse, and most of our citizens understand and respect that commitment.

In making determinations with regard to what is fair or an unjust criticism of a lawyer, we must keep in mind that, in a democratic society, citizens have a right to make reasonable and fair criticism of public officials, including those running for office. However, they do not have a right to unfairly impugn the integrity of an opponent for exercising his or her professional duties. In our view, this ad goes beyond fair criticism and unfairly impugns the integrity of this lawyer.

Lawyers deserve respect, not public disdain, for performing their professional duties, and it is reprehensible for their opponents to use fulfillment of a lofty ideal against them for political gain.