Professionalism Archives - Page 10 of 24

Trusting Your Colleagues with Fees: ABA Opines on Lawyers Splitting Fees

by Vincent Calarco in Attorneys Fees, Ethics Opinion, Legal Services, Professionalism, reasonable attorneys fees, splitting fees. Posted January 2, 2017

The ABA Standing Committee of Ethics and Professional Responsibility recently opined that when one lawyer receives a fee that is to be shared with a lawyer (or lawyers) at another firm (or firms), the fee for the other lawyer(s) should be placed in trust in accordance with Model Rule 1.15. Trusting

Out of the Frying Pan Into the Fire? Attorney’s Voluntary Discipline Petition Denied Based Due to Inapplicability of Cited Legal Ethics Rule

by MelissaScott in Client Communication, fraud, Legal Services, Professionalism, scope of representation, Uncategorized. Posted December 27, 2016

The Georgia Supreme Court rejected an immigration attorney’s voluntary discipline petition because the attorney misapplied the ethics rules. Legal

An Epidemic of Law Firm Bullies? Survey Reveals Disturbing Results

by Alessandria San Roman in Bullying, Professionalism. Posted December 15, 2016

Big law industry experts Patrick McKenna and David Parnell polled 124 law firm leaders at the nation’s top 100 law firms regarding bullying in the legal field. Epidemic

The Client Comes First: Lawyers Must Report Co-Counsel’s Potential Malpractice

by Daniel Celaya in Ethics Opinion, Featured, Professionalism. Posted October 5, 2016

The sanctity of the attorney-client relationship relies in large part on establishing and preserving a bedrock of trust between the parties. A recently released opinion by The New York State Bar reinforces this principle by concluding that a lawyer to must disclose to his client any potential malpractice of a co-counsel Report

Texas Bar Ethics Committee Approves “Competitive Keyword Advertising”

by Anibal Manzano in News, Professionalism. Posted September 19, 2016

Competitive keyword advertising in the legal services industry refers to the use of a competing lawyer’s name or firm name as a hidden “meta tag” or “keyword” to boost the visibility of online advertisements purchased from search engine companies (e.g., Google, Yahoo!, Bing).

Widening the Scope of the Administration of Justice: IAC Waivers in Plea Bargains

by MelissaScott in Ethics Opinion, Legal Services, Professionalism. Posted September 14, 2016

On June 10, 2016, the New York State Bar Association issued Opinion 1098, which prohibits prosecutors from ethically requiring that defendants waive ineffective assistance of counsel (“IAC”) claims as a condition in plea bargains. Widening

Misconduct Sanctions Subject to Appeal

by MatthewDennison in News, Professionalism. Posted September 8, 2016

Misconduct sanctions “can seriously impair an attorney's professional standing, reputation, and earning possibilities, such an order can't be brushed off as easily as a gnat.

New York Firms May Bill for Work of Unpaid Interns

by SabrinaRishmague in Legal Services, News, Professionalism. Posted September 6, 2016

A recent opinion issued by the Committee on Professional Ethics of the New York State Bar Association ruled that law firms may bill clients for the work of unpaid interns.

Hey “Darling,” There’s No More “Honey” In The Courtroom

by Elizabeth Gil in 8.4 (g), discrimination, News, Professionalism, Rules of Professional Conduct. Posted September 3, 2016

The American Bar Association (ABA) House of Delegates passed Resolution 109, which states that it is a violation of professional responsibility to discriminate or harass in conduct related to the practice of law. Darling

Ohio Advises on the Use of Flat Fee Agreements in Criminal Cases

by Danielle Gauer in Ethics Opinion, Legal Services, Professionalism. Posted April 1, 2016

In its recent Ethics Opinion 2016-1, the Supreme Court of Ohio’s Board of Professional Conduct addressed the issue of whether an attorney retained in a criminal matter can enter into a flat fee agreement requiring a client to pay a fixed amount in advance of representation. Agreements

[…] 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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