Just "Felonious Peccadillos"; I'm "Overqualified for Oklahoma"; Bar Association, "Bring It on Bitch": Surprisingly Ineffective in Fighting Disbarment
Eugene Barlean, a former Oklahoma legislative candidate, was disbarred following guilty pleas to two misdemeanor domestic assault charges involving choking and pushing a romantic partner. Despite claiming he was overqualified for Oklahoma and launching personal attacks on the Oklahoma Bar Association, the state Supreme Court found his actions demonstrated poor judgment and a propensity for violence. His failure to complete court-ordered probation requirements and repeated unprofessional communications led to disciplinary action.
- ▪Eugene Barlean pled guilty to two misdemeanor domestic assault and battery charges stemming from violent incidents with a romantic partner.
- ▪He failed to complete court-ordered probation requirements, including anger management and community service.
- ▪Barlean sent over twenty emails to the Oklahoma Bar Association, using threatening language and calling the court 'incompetent' and 'redneck.'
- ▪He claimed he was 'overqualified for Oklahoma' and stated he 'crush or pull out voice boxes' in reference to his military training.
- ▪The Oklahoma Supreme Court ruled that domestic violence constitutes a serious breach of a lawyer's ethical duties and justified disbarment.
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Legal Ethics Just "Felonious Peccadillos"; I'm "Overqualified for Oklahoma"; Bar Association, "Bring It on Bitch": Surprisingly Ineffective in Fighting Disbarment Eugene Volokh | 5.4.2026 8:32 AM Some excerpts from the long opinion in State ex rel. Oklahoma Bar Ass'n v. Barlean, decided Tuesday by the Oklahoma Supreme Court (opinion by Justice Kuehn); Barlean appears to have been a former candidate for the Oklahoma state legislature: On January 5, 2023, Respondent pled guilty to two misdemeanor charges of Domestic Assault and Battery …. Both charges stemmed from violent incidents involving Respondent and a woman with whom he had a romantic relationship. On August 16, 2021, during an argument, Respondent strangled or choked the woman until she gave him her car keys.
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