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The first time I broached the issue, in the November 20 meeting, you brushed aside my concern by telling me that we would make the lawsuits "survive a Rule 11." The second time I raised the issue was in a meeting on February 20, 2008, when you asked me for an example of when an attorney did not feel they could speak up to their manager without fear of retribution. I described this November case assignment meeting, and reminded you of how you had ignored my concern by telling me that you would make my complaints survive a Rule 11. At the February 20 meeting, you again aside my concern, saying that this was simply a misunderstanding."

On March 3, 2008, you came into my office and told me that in light of my concern, my entire caseload was being transferred to another attorney. I emailed you, reiterating that the issue was not that I filed frivolous lawsuits, but rather that the process I have described above is troubling, as attorneys within the office have no outlet through which they can raise ethical concerns. You ignored this email, which was my third attempt to bring your attention to this situation. I am attaching this email as Attachment B. I was subsequently assigned a number of projects that seemed punitive in nature, including an "emergency" one-day project that required me to summarize 50 years' worth of airline merger history history by 5:00 p.m.

This is a perfect illustration of the old punchline "The beatings will continue until morale improves." There's been reports filtering out about low morale and managerial chaos ever since Lori Swanson took the oath of office. This isn't surprising. It's just confirmation of the things we've heard all along.

Ms. Lawler is exactly right. Getting assigned that type of a project is punitive in nature. It had to be embarassing to have her cases transferred to another attorney.

The fact that her immediate supervisor told her that he'd help her avoid Rule 11 sanctions tells us that the Swanson AGO doesn't put a high priority on maintaining a high ethical standard. Instead, this suggests that she's borrowing from the Hatch playbook of using photo-ops filled with sympathetic figures to pressure companies into out of court settlements.

I'm not a lawyer but it doesn't sound like they're that concerned about winning in court. This question keeps popping into my head: Why would they emphasize the press conference but put little priority on the trial?

I hope this information on AG Swanson's tactics makes its way into the right attorneys hands so they can prepare themselves to withstand the media onslaught. Let's be clear about this. I'm all for punishing companies who break the law. I'm just not for punishing companies who are the target of a malicious attorney general who doesn't put a priority on conducting herself within ethical boundaries.

Ms. Lawler deserves our gratitude for standing up against this legal bully and for fighting the good fight against a morally deficient AG.

Comments welcome at LFR.