Ethical Considerations in the Public Sector

This event qualifies for 1.5 CLE

Stay out of the headlines - understand your ethical responsibilities as a public employee.

From Washington D.C., to the state house and city hall, accusations of conflicts of interest and ethical misconduct are in the headlines every day. Being a public official or public employee sometimes feels like someone has painted an ethics target on your back. Sometimes the ethical lapses are due to ignorance of the many laws. Knowing the ethical laws can help avoid being sucked in the fray. While the technicalities of the law vary from state to state or city to city, there are some basic principles that any public servant can observe to steer clear of the ethics law. This topic will give public officials and public employees the warning signs that behavior may approach breaching ethics laws. The content will look at real life situations from the perspective of someone who was both a prosecutor who investigated public officials and a counsel who tried to help his clients navigate through the landmines to ultimately serve the public. This information is critical for public officials and employees who want to stay out of the headlines for accusations of ethical misconduct or corruption.

Speaker and Presenter Information

Mark T. Morodomi

General Counsel of the Regents

Senior counsel, Office of the General Counsel, University of California
Former chief of enforcement and senior counsel for State of California’s Fair Political Practices Commission
Responsible for some of the state’s most sensitive corruption and ethics investigations
Litigated a landmark case in the California Supreme Court case eliminating a loophole used by lobbyists to avoid criminal prosecution
Advised the Bolivian government on the implementation of that county’s newly enacted campaign finance law
Successfully prosecuted multinational corporation for campaign money laundering and won the largest civil election law fine at the time in the nation
Prosecuted state senator for improper use of campaign funds
Prosecuted numerous elected officials or government employees for conflict of interest or campaign finance violations
Conducted prosecutions and investigations in cooperation with district attorney, inspector general, and U.S. Attorney offices of corrupt state and local public officials and lobbyists
Principal drafter of the revisions to California’s regulations on honoraria and gifts to public officials
Former Supervising Deputy City Attorney, Oakland City Attorney's Office; served as counsel to the Oakland Public Ethics Commission and Oakland City Auditor and special counsel to the San Francisco Ethics Commission; advised mayors, city council members and administrative staff
Has conducted almost 40 seminars and workshops on governmental ethics, conflicts of interest, freedom of information disclosure to state-wide officials, mayors, city council members, municipal administrators, and government staff
Served as legal counsel to political action committees, candidates for state legislature, mayor, and city council; drafted ballot measures
J.D. degree, New York University, School of Law; B.A. degree in political science, Stanford University