Sound familiar?

Consider this phrase: "conduct involving dishonesty, fraud, deceit, or misrepresentation."

Has a lot of bite doesn't it? And if it sounds familiar to you, that's probably because it's been in the news lately.

It's the phrase the North Carolina State Bar used in announcing the disbarment of Mike Nifong, the prosecutor in the Duke lacrosse team rape case.

Whatever one might think of Mr. Nifong's conduct, all indications are that he will learn a serious lesson from his punishment. Has Bill Swatek learned anything from being punished for acts of "dishonesty, fraud, deceit, or misrepresentation" in Alabama?

Based on the lawsuit Swatek filed against me, and his handling of that lawsuit, the answer appears to be no. And has Bill Swatek been held accountable by Alabama judges or the Alabama State Bar for his latest wrongdoing? Not on your life.

In fact, just the opposite has occurred. Alabama judges, all Republicans in the lawsuit filed against me, have aided, abetted, and protected Bill Swatek. They have committed blatant and repeated judicial corruption of the worst kind. As for the Alabama State Bar, I provided a detailed written account of Swatek's actions, his repeated violations of the Alabama Code of Professional Conduct. I received a letter stating that the State Bar would not even investigate.

I will soon provide all the details on the wrongdoing that occurred in my case. But first, let's consider some broader issues that are related to the "politicization of the justice system."

Why have judges in my case acted this way? Is it because Bill Swatek's son, Dax Swatek, is a fund-raiser for Republican politicians, including our current governor and at least one state appellate judge? Is it because Dax Swatek has ties to Bill Canary, who has ties to Karl Rove--and Canary and Rove did much of the legwork in the 1990s that turned Alabama state courts into a Republican playground?

If you are an attorney with a shady history--and public records show clearly that Bill Swatek is just that--can you file baseless lawsuits against people and never have to face the consequences?
If you have family ties to the state's Republican hierarchy, as Bill Swatek does, will the state's "conservative" judges ignore your shady past and look the other way when confronted with your present shenanigans?

Is that how things are done in Karl Rove's Alabama? Is this a textbook case of politicization of our courts?

Those questions are at the heart of the story that is about to unfold.