An editorial in the November 13 edition of the Wall Street Journal says that new standards are needed to control some of the activities of state attorneys general.

Citing a study by the Institute for Legal Reform of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the Journal says “State AGs have no uniform rules governing their conduct, and whatever procedures are in place for initiating investigations and litigating are largely hidden from public view. This includes guidelines on the use of outside trial lawyers; the use of settlement funds; multistate litigation; and public statements regarding an investigation or ongoing trial.”

The current situation is all the more troubling, says the Journal, “given that state AGs are increasingly assailing long-standing business practices, often driven by a political agenda as much as by a duty to enforce the law. As the old joke goes, ‘AG’ stands for ‘aspiring Governor.’ And no one epitomized this better than New York's current Governor Eliot Spitzer. In his previous job as AG, Mr. Spitzer regularly threatened criminal prosecution in order to extract settlements in civil suits and win headlines.”

What It Means to Agents:  The editorial in the Wall Street Journal raises many of the issues PIA has raised in our ongoing battle to defend the ability of agents to receive contingent commissions, and in defense of our members’ reputations. We have spoken out strongly against a few AGs attempts to usurp state legislatures by attempting to use so-called voluntary settlement agreements to enact new public policy.

AGs Gone Wild (Wall Street Journal 11/13 *subscription only)

U.S. Chamber Proposes Code of Conduct for State AGs (Press release)

Report on Policies and Practices of State AGs (Institute for Legal Reform)

November 14, 2007