Ethics Watch asks for McInnis probe

Colorado Ethics Watch has asked the Office of Attorney Regulation Counsel to investigate reports that former Congressman Scott McInnis, a licensed Colorado attorney, earned $300,000 from a private foundation for original writings on water issues but delivered to the foundation reports that were partially written by a non-lawyer assistant and allegedly contained plagiarized material.

Luis Toro, Director of Colorado Ethics Watch, issued the following statement: “News reports alleging that Congressman McInnis’ fellowship work was largely outsourced to a water engineer and contained plagiarized material raise serious ethics questions under the Rules of Professional Conduct that apply to all Colorado lawyers. Today’s filing will insure that the matter is not overlooked by the Office of Regulatory Counsel simply because no one formally brought it to the office’s attention.”