Bar Bid by Attorney General’s Brother Draws Lawyer Concerns (1)

Brad Bondi is defending his campaign to run the DC Bar amid worries from Washington attorneys over his sister’s prominent role in the Trump administration.

Some Washington lawyers are have raised concerns over Bondi’s DC Bar campaign, as the body fields ethics charges against attorneys linked to President Donald Trump.

Bondi said in a statement Friday that his effort to run for the DC Bar presidency began months before the November election and isn’t connected to national politics. His sister, Attorney General Pam Bondi, was announced as Trump’s nominee on Nov. 21, and was confirmed on Feb. 5.

“The Bar has a non-partisan mission, which I intend to vigilantly protect against any push to politicize it,” said Bondi, a partner at Paul Hastings.

Brad Bondi was publicly named in February as a candidate for DC Bar president. Also running for a bar leadership position is Alicia Long, chief deputy for Ed Martin, Trump’s pick to lead the US attorney’s office in Washington. If elected, both would be among the 20 lawyers who sit on the bar’s board of governors.

Current and former bar officials and members said that, if elected, Bondi wouldn’t oversee the disciplinary proceedings, and any other influence he could have over that work would be tempered by other bar leaders or the District of Columbia Court of Appeals.

DC Bar elections begin on April 15 and run until June 4.

Politicization Fears

Concerns about the two attorneys come as Senate Judiciary Committee Democrats on Thursday filed a misconduct complaint with the bar’s disciplinary counsel against Martin, alleging he abused his position while handling Jan. 6 Capitol riot cases.

If elected, Bondi—through his role on the bar’s board of governors—would help recommend members for the Board on Professional Responsibility, a panel that reviews disciplinary findings against Washington attorneys. Final disciplinary decisions are made by the local District of Columbia Court of Appeals, which appoints the members of the professional responsibility board.

“The disciplinary system operates independently from the D.C. Bar, and we have no control or influence over cases that are investigated or prosecuted by the Office of Disciplinary Counsel,” Robert Spagnoletti, CEO of the D.C. Bar, said.

The board of governors also approves the bar’s budget, including money set aside for the disciplinary counsel’s office. Any conflict over those funds are taken to the DC Court of Appeals, and former bar officials say they don’t recall that ever happening.

The president also has influence over who chairs the bar’s standing committees, which include panels overseeing the bar’s budget and investments. The treasurer helps oversee the budget, but changes would require approval from a majority of the board of governors.

David Cole, a Georgetown University law professor, said that even though the disciplinary proceedings aren’t run by bar leadership, he’s still concerned that the process could be manipulated as a retaliatory move due to cases against Trump allies. He raised the possibility of charges being filed against Washington lawyers who’ve worked on lawsuits against early Trump administration actions.

“There’s a concern that they would seek to politicize the disciplinary process, and to politicize the bar more generally,” said Cole, the ACLU’s former national legal director.

The Office of Disciplinary Counsel, housed within the bar, has charged Trump allies over their efforts to overturn former President Joe Biden‘s election win in 2020. Former Trump Justice Department attorney Jeffrey Clark and one-time Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani are among those who have seen their law licenses come under scrutiny by that office.

Charles Work, who served as one of the bar’s first presidents, said he’s concerned that a person related to a top Trump administration official leading the group could give the impression of partisanship, even if Bondi doesn’t take any overtly partisan actions.

“It’s important because membership in the DC Bar is required,” Work said.

Long didn’t immediately return a request for comment.

‘Isn’t About Politics’

Bondi on Friday pointed to previous stints in bar leadership positions, and said he’s spent over 20 years working on DC Bar-sponsored pro bono matters.

He said his focus at the bar is on “efficiency and practical benefits,” which would include more educational programming and expanded pro bono opportunities.

“This isn’t about politics; I’m running to help strengthen our profession and support members of the Bar no matter what their beliefs or backgrounds,” Bondi said.

Bondi was twice elected to sit on the steering committee of its Corporation, Finance and Securities Law Community, according to his law firm website. He is running against Diane A. Seltzer, an employment lawyer.

Bondi, a longtime white collar attorney, currently co-chairs Paul Hasting’s investigations and white collar defense practice. He was recently hired by YouTube personality “MrBeast” Jimmy Donaldson and a group of investors for legal advice on a bid to buy TikTok Inc., and has also given advice to top Trump ally and billionaire Elon Musk’s Tesla, Inc. on SEC matters.

Long, a current member of the bar association’s board of governors, is a career prosecutor for the D.C. US Attorney’s Office and former staffer many years ago for Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.), now majority leader.

Both Bondi and Long nominated themselves to run for the positions, according to Spagnoletti. Candidates are then considered by the bar’s nomination committee, which selects two to three candidates for each open spot.