Director named for new lawyer assistance program

TOPEKA—The Supreme Court has appointed Donald L. Zemites, Kansas City, KS, to executive director of the recently created Kansas Impaired Lawyer Assistance program, a statewide assistance program to further combat problems resulting from mental infirmity, disorder, or addiction to or excessive use of drugs and alcohol.

The program is being funded exclusively from attorney registration fees. Zemites will be devoting half time to the position.

Justice Donald L. Allegrucci, who presented the proposal to the Supreme Court, said the Zemites will be supported by an 11-member board and volunteer attorneys who will serve as counselors. He noted that there has been an impaired lawyer committee of the Kansas Bar Association for many years; however, much of its work is confined to urban areas. The new program is designed to reach all areas of the state, particularly in the more rural parts, to enhance statewide coverage.

The primary purposes of the program are to protect clients from harm caused by impaired lawyers, assist impaired lawyers in recovery, and education the bench and bar to the causes of and remedies for impaired lawyers.

"The bottom line is that we want to provide immediate and continuing help to lawyers who suffer from physical or mental disabilities that result from disease, disorder, trauma, or age and that impair their ability to practice," Justice Allegrucci said.

"Depression, drugs, and alcohol are recurring problems that surface in attorney discipline cases that come before us," he said.

Zemites has been in private practice since 1975 and before that served as a corporate attorney and director of employee relations for a private corporation. He received his law degree from the University of Missouri at Kansas City in 1968 and was graduated from Pittsburg State University in 1959.