Wendy Patrick

Wendy Patrick is an attorney who has been working in the justice system for nearly 30 years and has been drawn to professional responsibility and legal ethics for almost the entire period because it is at the core of everything advocates do.

“I am honored to be on the cutting edge of writing and presenting on some of the fastest developing fields of ethics alongside my esteemed colleagues. These include artificial intelligence, the intersection of bias and civility and the ethics of wellness,” Patrick said.

She currently works for the San Diego district attorney’s office and has handled a full caseload of sensitive investigations, including threats against public officials, judges and other professionals, as well as police misconduct and officer-involved shootings.

Outside of that work, she is a former chair of the California State Bar Ethics Committee’s Committee for Professional Responsibility and Conduct and was a six-year chair of the San Diego County Bar Association legal ethics committee.

“I teach legal ethics professionally around the country and have taught it internationally as well,” she said.

Patrick also mentioned significant challenges she had to overcome, including promoting contemporary professional responsibility, which involves challenging the status quo. Receptivity to change benefits clients, access to justice, and the public at large, broadening the advocate’s ability to engage ethically and effectively.

“Professional responsibility is an evolving requirement for lawyers within every specialization,” Patrick said. “Our brave new post-pandemic world is filled with new challenges and new adventures to explore and conquer both legally and ethically; I am looking forward to the journey.”

Patrick also holds a Ph.D. in theology from the University of Wales Trinity Saint David and a master of divinity degree summa cum laude from Bethel Seminary San Diego.