News Archives - Page 2 of 22 - Legal Ethics Advisor

New York State Bar Approves Paying Fees in a Criminal Matter from Personal Injury Settlement

by Lina Mesa in Attorney Client Relationship, Attorneys Fees, Ethics Opinion, Legal Services, News, Professionalism. Posted April 17, 2018

According to a recent opinion from the New York State Bar Association Committee on Professional Ethics, attorneys who represent a client in both a criminal and civil matter are permitted to use the proceeds from the civil case to cover legal fees in the criminal defense matter.

Protecting Prospective Clients with Diminished Capacity

by Geoffrey Marcus in Attorney Client Relationship, confidentiality, Ethics Opinion, News, Professionalism. Posted April 13, 2018

A recent opinion from the New York City Bar Association’s Committee on Professional Ethics finds that a lawyer may disclose a limited amount of confidential information when a prospective client with serious diminished capacity is at risk of substantial physical, financial, or other harm. Protecting

NYSBA Finds Lawyer’s Investment “Too Great a Financial Stake in The Litigation”

by Joshua Mandel in Attorney Client Relationship, Conflict of Interest, Ethics Opinion, News, Professionalism. Posted April 10, 2018

A recent ethics opinion from the New York State Bar Association (“NYSBA”) found that a lawyer and his or her law firm is forbidden from representing a client in litigation funded by a company in which the lawyer invests.

Attorney is Disqualified From Representing Parent After Partner Served as GAL

by mchernandez in Attorney Client Relationship, Conflict of Interest, Ethics Opinion, News, Professionalism. Posted April 5, 2018

According to a recent opinion from the Illinois State Bar Association, a lawyer cannot represent a parent in a custody or child support case because another lawyer at the firm, who had worked as a solo practitioner previously, had represented the child as a court-appointed guardian ad litem in a visitation matter. Attorney

Florida Supreme Court Broadens the Definition of Attorney Referral Services

by Ludovica Gardani in Attorney Client Relationship, Attorneys Fees, Legal Services, News, Professionalism. Posted April 3, 2018

On March 8, 2018, the Florida Supreme Court broadened the definition of lawyer referral services under rule 4-7.22 to include the compliance of non-attorney-owned directories and other online companies.

Secret Email Tracking is Unethical

by Sarah Cohen in Attorney Client Relationship, confidentiality, Ethics Opinion, News, Professionalism, Software, Technology. Posted March 27, 2018

A recent ethics opinion from the Illinois State Bar Association has concluded that the practice of using hidden email tracking software is unethical. The opinion makes Illinois the fourth jurisdiction to address this issue, alongside Alaska, Pennsylvania, and New York. Secret

Florida Bar Declares Fee for Law Clerks Excessive

by Paige Coles in Attorney Client Relationship, Attorneys Fees, News, Outsourcing, Professionalism. Posted March 22, 2018

Last month a Tampa attorney settled a case brought against her by the Florida Bar for, among other things, charging excessive fees.

‘Generally Known?”: ABA Clarifies Attorney’s Duty of Confidentiality

by Lilli Balik in Attorney Client Relationship, confidentiality, Ethics Opinion, News, Professionalism. Posted March 20, 2018

In December, the ABA issued Formal Opinion 479, clarifying the concept of “generally known” in ABA Model Rule 1.9(c)(1). Confidentiality

Third Party Conflict or Home Run?

by Spencer Booth in Attorney Client Relationship, Conflict of Interest, News, Professionalism. Posted March 15, 2018

On February 15th, a Texas appellate court held that lawyers who briefly represented a plaintiff and a third-party defendant in the same suit were not disqualified because the conflict of interest was quickly cured and the party seeking the disqualification was not actually prejudiced.

Blind-Copying Clients on Email is Risky, Alaska Bar Warns

by Brett Silverberg in Attorney Client Relationship, confidentiality, Ethics Opinion, News, Professionalism. Posted March 9, 2018

A recent ethics opinion issued in Alaska concludes that it is not necessarily unethical for attorneys to carbon-copy and blind-copy clients in e-mails exchanged with opposing counsel. Alaska

[…] of a non-binding advisory opinion, as has been the case with other jurisdictions such as, Florida, San Francisco, and Delaware, it is important to note that Ohio went a step further and amended its rule regarding […]

Remote Lawyering: New Jersey and Ohio On Board - Legal Ethics Advisor on Remote Work: San Francisco Bar Association Advice in Ethics Opinion 2021-1
Not all jurisdictions have adopted the Model Rule version of the choice of law rule; seems like there might be a different result in at least some of those states. See, e.g., NY RPC 8.5(b)(2)(i) ("If the lawyer is licensed to practice only in this state, the rules to be applied shall be the rules of this state").

Art Lachman on ABA Opinion 499 Green Lights Lawyers’ Passive Investment in Firms with NonLawyer Ownership

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