State Ex Rel. Oklahoma Bar Ass'n v. Page

Under the controlling rule, 5 O.S. 1981 Ch. 1, App. 1-A, Rule 8, a lawyer who is the subject of an investigation or a pending proceeding involving allegations of misconduct may resign membership in the Oklahoma Bar Association at any time.1 Because Rule 8.2 uses the mandatory command “shall” in requiring this Court to enter an order approving the resignation of such a lawyer, we have been stripped of discretion concerning whether to approve proffered resignations under the rule.2

Several reasons have been propounded for the existence of Rule 8.2. The one most often voiced is that the Oklahoma…