ALBANY — State ethics guardian Ravi Batra has resigned his membership in the New York State Trial Lawyers Association, which lobbies state government.

Batra, a litigator in private practice who was appointed to the Joint Commission on Public Ethics by Senate Minority Leader John Sampson (D-Brooklyn), claimed he was unaware the association employed paid lobbyists.

The commission oversees lobbyists and their clients and investigates alleged lobby-law violations.

Batra said he had thought the association’s lobbying was handled by the separate Lawpac political- action committee.

He agreed to give up his membership after he said he learned of the association’s own lobbyists, including Dan Klores Communications and former Senate Republican Counsel Kenneth Riddett, from the Albany Times-Union.

“To be on the ethics board, you have to be cleaner than Caesar’s wife,” said Batra.

He said in a separate statement his resignation was “to avoid even the appearance of impropriety.”