Settlement disbursements.

Those who are suggesting that we interpret the Rules Regulating The Florida Bar to prevent attorneys from allowing their clients to receive the entire settlement proceeds and pay their own bills (See Proposed Ethics Opinion 00-2 Reconsideration) must not be dealing with our state's upstanding citizens.

Attorneys are already thought of suspiciously in our society. (Witness the passage of Amendment 3). Who is going to be the one to tell a client, "The Bar has decided that you cannot be trusted to pay your bills. So I cannot let the business/ person/insurance company defendant who harmed you pay you everything they owe you. I must insist that the defendants pay me that portion of the settlement that you owe to others. No, no, that isn't because we think we're more trustworthy than you. Yes, we know that there was already a rule that prevents our participation...