Arrangement has sparked criticism from Democrats who say legislators shouldn't represent lawsuits against their own state, but ethics officials say it's legal.
Two Republican members of Connecticut's General Assembly have found dual purpose in the fight against COVID-19 restrictions as lawyers and lawmakers, the Associated Press reported.
"It's just an odd one to sue the state you represent, that you're duly elected to represent," said House Speaker Matt Ritter, a Democrat from Hartford and a private attorney."I wouldn't change the statute. I just personally would not sue the state of Connecticut as a lawyer, as a legislator." Dubitsky, who declined to discuss the woman's claim, said in an interview with AP that he and Fishbein are doing nothing wrong and are taking on cases that other lawyers would avoid because of fears about political repercussions.
It's not unheard of for state legislators to sue their own governor and state agencies over pandemic-related issues. Most cases, however, have not involved legislators who are also private attorneys getting paid by clients to sue the state. A spokesperson for the National Conference of State Legislatures said it can be difficult to track how many legislatures, if any, might consider that to be a conflict of interest.
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