Professionalism Archives - Page 9 of 24

Is Avvo’s Referral Service Ethical? Florida May Add its Voice to the Chorus.

by Lilli Balik in Attorneys Fees, Ethics Opinion, Professionalism. Posted September 16, 2017

The New York State Bar Association recently joined other states that have found that the use of Avvo’s attorney referral service is impermissible as it violates the professional conduct rules that prohibit sharing fees with nonlawyers or paying a nonlawyer for a referral or recommendation. Chorus

All Hands on Deck – Texas Welcomes Out of State Attorneys In Harvey Aftermath

by Niki Namazi in Legal Services, News, Professionalism. Posted September 7, 2017

Last week the Texas Supreme Court issued an order that permits licensed attorneys from other states to provide legal services to the victims of Hurricane Harvey through legal aid or pro bono programs.

New York City Bar: Is A Client’s Confidential Information Secure at the Border?

by Daniel Celaya in Attorney Client Privilege, client confidentiality, confidentiality, cybersecurity, Ethics Opinion, Hardware, Legal Services, Professionalism, Technology, us border searches. Posted August 17, 2017

Attorney’s traveling across the U.S. border may have to account for more than just their luggage. In fact, the New York City Bar recently issued Formal Opinion 2017-5, which offers guidance on dealing with the threat of disclosing confidential client information during a border search of electronic devices.

Florida Contemplates Fee Sharing with Out of State NonLawyers

by Daniel Celaya in Attorney Fees, Attorneys Fees, Bar Opinions, Ethics Opinion, Legal Services, Outsourcing, Professionalism, Uncategorized, work product privilege. Posted August 8, 2017

A proposed advisory opinion by The Florida Bar's Professional Ethics Committee addresses fee-splitting with out-of-state lawyers when the out-of-state lawyer practices in a law firm with nonlawyer ownership. Contemplates

Public Defenders and Part-time Judges: Duties under the Misconduct Rule

by Elizabeth Gil in Ethics Opinion, Featured, News, Professionalism. Posted April 17, 2017

Recently, the New York State Bar Association (N.Y.S.B.A.) Committee on Professional Ethics held that a public defender may not represent a client in the court where another public defender is a part-time judge because to do so would violate the public defender’s duties under Rule 8.4(f)—Misconduct. Defenders

Zealous Advocacy Gone Too Far: Louisiana Attorney is Disbarred for Repeated “Shocking Disregard” of Obligations

by Carlos Alvarez in Featured, News, Professionalism. Posted April 12, 2017

In a recent per curium opinion, the Louisiana Supreme Court found an attorney to have permanently forfeited his ability to practice law in the state due to “a panoply of serious professional violations.” Zealous

Office-Sharing Lawyers Found to Be in Same Firm

by MatthewDennison in Featured, Professionalism. Posted March 30, 2017

The Missouri Court of Appeals recently ruled that two attorneys who share office space may be members of the same firm and therefore not bound by the ethics rules on fee-sharing among unaffiliated lawyers.

New Jersey: Prosecutors Cannot Publicly Display Seized Contraband

by Justin Boyd in Ethics Opinion, Featured, Professionalism. Posted March 6, 2017

In February, the New Jersey Advisory Committee on Professional Ethics opined that a prosecutor is prohibited from making “extrajudicial statements featuring displays of seized drugs, weapons, or other contraband.” Prosecutors

Young Lawyers Beware!

by SabrinaRishmague in Featured, Professionalism. Posted March 5, 2017

The Indiana Supreme Court recently suspended a young lawyer for at least two years for breaching 19 ethics rules. Young

South Carolina Lawyer’s ‘Niceties’ Do Not Establish ‘Prospective Client’ Relationships

by MelissaScott in Featured, Professionalism. Posted February 14, 2017

A federal judge in South Carolina, when ruling on a motion to disqualify counsel, held that a lawyer communicating “[c]ustomary niceties” such as “I hope we get the opportunity to work together” does not form an attorney-client relationship within the meaning of South Carolina’s ethics rules. Relationships

[…] 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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Professionalism ( Page 9 )