Conflict of Interest Controversy
While serving as a public defender in San Francisco, Gonzalez took a month-long paid leave of absence to act as co-counsel for a corporation, Cobra Solutions, in its $16 million lawsuit against San Francisco, Gonzalez's employer. In the lawsuit, Gonzalez gave the opening arguments and cross-examined witnesses. The San Francisco Public Defender's office rules of ethics states: "No employee may provide legal advice or legal representation...to any person or entity other than in the employee's official capacity." Said Peter Keene, former chief assistant public defender and dean emeritus at the Golden Gate University Law School, "I'm totally flabbergasted. It is totally out of line. It is not only a complete conflict, it flies in the face of your loyalty to your main employer, the city. Matt shouldn't be doing it."
Read more about this topic: Matt Gonzalez
Famous quotes containing the words conflict of, conflict, interest and/or controversy:
“The theater, bringing impersonal masks to life, is only for those who are virile enough to create new life: either as a conflict of passions subtler than those we already know, or as a complete new character.”
—Alfred Jarry (1873–1907)
“Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered. Yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict the more glorious the triumph. What we obtain too cheap we esteem too lightly.”
—Thomas Paine (1737–1809)
“It is the interest of the commercial world that wealth should be found everywhere.”
—Edmund Burke (1729–1797)
“Ours was a highly activist administration, with a lot of controversy involved ... but I’m not sure that it would be inconsistent with my own political nature to do it differently if I had it to do all over again.”
—Jimmy Carter (James Earl Carter, Jr.)