Gov't. Lawyer: There IS a Free Lunch, If Opposing Counsel Pays
The city of Atlanta has a rule against employees accepting gratuities.
But that prohibition doesn’t apply to the expensive meals to which he has been treated by opposing counsel, contends city staff attorney Robert Godfrey, because he answers to a higher authority—the State Bar of Georgia—and the attorney ethics rules it imposes on lawyers.
Applying that theory to the facts of his situation, Godfrey reportedly dined twice for free at Silk Asian Steak and Seafood Restaurant several years ago, because opposing counsel suing the city paid. The ante added up to $294 for a three-person meal and $153 for a two-person meal, including a bar tab of $42, recounts the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
However, Paula Frederick, the who serves as general counsel to the bar, is dubious.
“Just because you’re a lawyer doesn’t mean you’re not wearing multiple hats,” she tells the newspaper. “A lawyer should expect to be bound by the rules of the group that he’s playing with.”
Godfrey didn’t respond to the AJC’s efforts to seek his comment.
A city ethics board review of the situation is under way, with an evidentiary hearing scheduled in May.
