DC Bar Association files disciplinary charges against lawyers over 2020 election fraud claims

The Bar association in Washington, D.C., filed disciplinary charges against three lawyers associated with former President Trump’s alleged attempt to overturn the 2020 presidential election results.

The filings, made public Friday, accuse attorneys Juli Haller, Lawrence Joseph and Brandon Johnson, of knowingly making false statements to courts about different lawsuits they filed after election was certified and called for President Biden.

Joseph and his co-counsel filed a federal lawsuit against former Vice President Mike Pence earlier this month in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas. He claimed electors convened in Arizona, Georgia, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin in an attempt to sway Pence to manipulate the election in Trump’s favor.

Haller was involved in Trump’s attorney Sidney Powell’s “Kraken” lawsuits, the name she gave to the unsuccessful litigation that aimed to reverse Biden’s 2020 victory in swing states. She was also joined by Johnson in several lawsuits surrounding Powell.

After Haller worked with Powell, she represented defendants from the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, Politico reported.

The charges will be heard by a committee of the D.C. Bar. If they are found guilty of violating the D.C. Rules of Professional Conduct, they could face sanctions and “appropriate discipline.”

It’s the latest in a series of proceedings filed against attorneys who have made unsubstantiated election fraud claims or made attempts to overturn the 2020 election results.

Trump has been indicted in two separate criminal cases surrounding his effort to remain in power after leaving the White House. One in D.C. federal court, centered on his actions around Jan. 6, and another in Georgia — where he was charged alongside 18 others with violations of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act.