By Justin J. Voeller

On August 18, 2025, the State Bar of California reissued proposed amendments to Rules 8.2 and 8.4 of the Rules of Professional Conduct, opening an additional 45-day public comment period.  No changes were made to the proposed amendments since the rulemaking notice was first issued in May. Following the public comment period, the State Bar’s Board of Trustees may choose to approve the amendments for submission to the California Supreme Court, which must then adopt the amendments before they become effective.

Currently, Rule 8.2(a) provides that “a lawyer shall not make a statement of fact that the lawyer knows to be false … concerning the qualifications or integrity of a judge or judicial officer[.]” The proposed amendment to Rule 8.2 would add a comment, clarifying that “a statement that is asserted as opinion may be the basis for discipline if the ‘statement implies actual facts that are capable of objective verification,’ those facts are false, and the statement is made with knowledge or reckless disregard of the truth or falsity of those facts” (emphasis added).

Rule 8.4(c) states that it is professional misconduct for a lawyer to “engage in conduct involving dishonesty, fraud, deceit, or reckless or intentional misrepresentation.” Similarly, Rule 8.4(d) provides that it is professional misconduct for a lawyer to “engage in conduct that is prejudicial to the administration of justice.” The proposed amendment to Rule 8.4 adds Comment[7], which clarifies that unprotected activities, including speech, that may be the basis for discipline under paragraph (c) or (d) include: (1) a statement made with the specific intent of producing imminent lawless action against a judge or judicial officer and likely to do so; (2) a true threat of violence; and (3) a false statement of fact, or a statement asserted as opinion that “implies actual facts that are capable of objective verification” that are false, regarding a judge or judicial officer made with knowledge or reckless disregard of the truth or falsity of the facts.

During its January 31, 2025, meeting, the State Bar Standing Committee on Professional Responsibility and Conduct (COPRAC) unanimously approved amendments to Rules of Professional Conduct 8.2 and 8.4. The California Judges Association requested modification to these rules in response to increased public criticism and threats of violence toward members of the judiciary. The American Bar Association has reported that “credible threats of harm against the judiciary have risen sharply, from 175 in 2019 to 500 in 2023.” Federal Courts have also seen a similar uptick in violence toward judges; Chief Justice John Roberts highlighted in the 2024 Year-End Report on the Federal Judiciary that “the volume of hostile threats and communications directed at judges has more than tripled over the past decade.”

In March 2025, COPRAC issued an Ethics Alert, clarifying that “activities—including but not limited to public statements and actions—that threaten or attempt to threaten the safety of a judge or judicial officer in a manner that deters or prevents them from performing their duties are prohibited by the ethics rules.” The proposed amendments to rules 8.2 and 8.4 seek to formalize the guidance issued in the Ethics Alert. If the State Bar adopts the proposed amendments to Rules 8.2 and 8.4, attorneys will be required to be more cautious when making public statements about judicial officers. The outcome of this rulemaking process will not only dictate the professional obligations of California lawyers but may also signal how the legal community intends to respond to growing concerns about threats against the judiciary.