Professional ethics and the lawyer's duty to self

A peaceful society depends on the high ethical standards of its lawyers: Communal trust in the legal process gives force to the law that helps to maintain society as a cohesive organism. In the past decade of turmoil, mutual trust and confidence in our institutions has declined; individual interests have been increasingly collectivized and subjected to legal processes.1 Under such circumstances, the ethics of lawyers have become still more noticeable and important.