Questão jurídica principal
How must disciplinary sanctions against lawyers comply with proportionality and be selected according to their severity?
Decisão extraída
Disciplinary sanctions must be proportionate to the nature and seriousness of the breach and may not exceed what is necessary to protect clients and prevent disruption of the administration of justice; the authority has discretion but must respect the hierarchy of sanctions.
Fundamentação extraída
The court explains that constitutional proportionality requires an appropriate relationship between the misconduct and the sanction. In choosing and assessing the sanction, the authority must consider the differing weight and ranking of available measures.