Sunday, September 11, 2022

This Is Bugging Shit Out Of Me

Yes, there are criminal penalties for lying in court: when one testifies under oath falsely and knowingly and the testimony is material to the issues in court. It’s called perjury.

Lawyers seldom testify, especially if they are representing a client.

The penalty lawyers face in federal court is more immediate. They can be barred from practicing in federal court.

Lawyers are licensed by the states where they practice. Losing that license can be a long process. Lawyers are licensed to practice in federal court by the courts themselves (from district court up to the Supremes). Misrepresentation is the more common sin among lawyers representing clients: negligently or intentionally misleading the court. State bars may eventually punish a lawyer for egregiously lying in court; federal courts can do it almost instanter.

A federal court license is a privilege which can be withdrawn rather easily. Lie to a federal judge, and you may not be allowed back into that court; or any court in that federal district. It’s a much more swift and sure punishment than criminal prosecution, which the court can only recommend, but not prosecute.

Put simply, Giuliani, et al., didn’t want to get kicked out of court for claiming fraud they couldn’t possibly prove. That’s misrepresentation. The same holds for Trump’s lawyers in Cannon’s court: poor as their pleadings are, they dare not make direct misrepresentations of fact that Trump used his magic presidential powers to declassify documents like a faith healer curing cancer. At least two of them are there at the specific permission of the court (pro hac vice). The court can withdraw that permission in a heartbeat.

That, not possible criminal prosecution, is the sword hanging over their heads.
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