grixit wrote:What kind of sanctions do judges normally impose for fake quotes? I think if i were a judge i'd see that as both obstruction of justice and perjury.
It wouldn't be perjury because lawyers don't sign briefs under penalties of perjury, and I don't think that "obstruction of justice" applies either.
Deliberately misrepresenting the state of the law to a judge would be a serious breach of ethics, and could be punished by suspension or even disbarment. However, individual judges don't have that power, so what would be most likely would be for the judge to refer the matter to the state disciplinary board for action.
But you'd be surprised how often no one cares. I once had an opponent who filed a reply brief with the court that made a false claim about a critical fact in an important precedent that I had cited in my own brief. (The misrepresentation was sort of like a tax denier claiming that Brushaber was an agent for foreign investors.) I pointed out the misrepresentation to the judge, but the judge never did anything about it. In fact, the judge never did anything about anything and was removed from the case (and all other pending cases) about two years later, without ever ruling. I then filed a complaint against the lawyer with the disciplinary board (not just for the misrepresentation but for other actions as well; this was not an isolated incident) and the disciplinary board dismissed the complaint because it wasn't timely. (Who knew there was a statute of limitations for unethical conduct?)
