A Question of Ethics - Free Speech. Michael Mayfield, the president of Mendo Mill and Lumber Co . , in California, received a "notice of a legal claim" from Edward Starski.The "claim" alleged that a stack of lumber fell on a customer as a result of a Mendo employee's "incompetence." The "notice" presented a settlement offer on the customer's behalf in exchange for a release of liability for Mendo. In a follow - up phone conversation with Mayfield, Starski said that he was an attorney - which, in fact, he was not. Starski was arrested and charged with violating a state criminal statute that prohibited the unauthorized practice of law. [People v . Starski, 7 Cal.App.5th 215, 212 Cal.Rptr.3d 622 (1Dist. Div. 2 2017)] (See Business and the Bill of Rights.)TrAccess bilityBookmar
Starski argued that "creating an illusion" that he was an attorney was protected bythe First Amendment. Is Starski correct? Explain.