Court: Texas bar can sanction Paxton

AUSTIN — A Texas appeals court ruled that Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton can face discipline from the state bar association over his failed effort to overturn the 2020 presidential election.

A disciplinary committee of the State Bar of Texas accused Paxton in 2022 of making fraud claims in a lawsuit that questioned President Joe Biden’s victory. On Thursday, a three-judge panel of the 5th District Court of Appeals said Paxton can be sanctioned by the committee because the lawsuit seeks to punish him in his personal capacity as an attorney and not as a public official.

“The focus of the commission’s allegations is squarely on Paxton’s alleged misconduct — not that of the state,” Judge Erin Nowell, an elected Democrat, wrote in the 2-1 opinion.

The lone Republican on the panel, Judge Emily Miskel, was in dissent.

A spokesperson for the State Bar of Texas and the committee accusing Paxton declined to comment on the ruling.

The state bar’s disciplinary group’s punishments against an attorney can range from a written admonition to a suspension or disbarment.

Paxton is not required to have bar membership to serve as attorney general.

State bar officials began investigating complaints over Paxton’s election lawsuit in 2021. A similar disciplinary proceeding was launched by the group against Paxton’s top deputy. That case awaits a ruling by the Texas Supreme Court.