Legal Ethics

Colo. Secty of State Changes Mind, Won't Moonlight at Former Law Firm After All

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Sharply criticized after he announced a plan to moonlight at his former law firm to supplement his government salary, the newly elected Colorado secretary of state has changed his mind.

Scott Gessler announced today that he won’t be taking a second job putting in 20 hours per month at the Hackstaff Law Group after all, reports the Spot for Politics & Policy at the Denver Post.

Formerly known as Hackstaff Gessler, the firm specializes in election and campaign law.

“Over the past two weeks, many have asked that I publicly disclose client names,” says Gessler in a written statement.

However, the Hackstaff firm has “expressed great discomfort with this arrangement,” he continues, and “I cannot in good conscience expect anyone to subject themselves to public scrutiny, merely because I am doing some legal work for them.

“For this reason, I have decided that I will not do any work representing clients through my former law firm. And while I have had substantial discussions with the attorney general’s office about outside employment, I have nonetheless asked the attorney general to halt work on this issue. I have decided that I will not go forward with my initial plans.”

Earlier coverage:

ABAJournal.com: “Colo. Secretary of State Plans to Moonlight at Law Firm to Help with $68K Government Salary”

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