Government lawyers called 'intentionally deceptive,' forced to take ethics classes

A federal judge rebuked Department of Justice lawyers in an order he issued Thursday, calling them "intentionally deceptive" and mandating remedial ethics classes.

U.S. District Judge Andrew Hanen was presiding over a case concerning President Obama's executive actions on immigration, specifically concerning how many work permits were issued by the administration to undocumented immigrants. "The misconduct in this case was intentional, serious, and material," Hanen wrote. "In fact, it is hard to imagine a more serious, more calculated plan of unethical conduct."

To address this, he added, "any attorney employed at the Justice Department" who intends to go to court in the 26 states involved in the suit will be required to attend an annual ethics training lasting at least three hours and addressing ethical topics including "candor to the court and truthfulness to third parties."

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