This year marked the 40th anniversary of the creation of the ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct. These rules replaced the Code of Professional Responsibility which was promulgated in 1968, which replaced the Canons of Ethics adopted in 1908. The first code of ethics for lawyers in the United States was drafted in 1883 by the Alabama Bar. So this year marks the 140th anniversary of an attempt to create a set of rules, goals, principles, best practices, aspirations and minimum performance standards for us all.

The adoption of the modern Rules of Professional Conduct was followed within a few years by model standards for imposing lawyer discipline and a model set of rules and practices for disciplinary enforcement agencies. Combined, these three guides created pretty much the entire superstructure of lawyer discipline, though there are many state-by-state differences in how the systems work.