Online Vitriol: Amending Confidentiality Rule 4-1.6 and Proposed Opinion 21-1 on Third Party Criticism
At its recent meeting, The Florida Bar’s Professional Ethics Committee approved an amendment to Florida Bar Rule 4-1.6 Confidentiality that would provide a limited exception to permit lawyers to respond when they suffer an online vitriol attack from a former client that includes allegations of a prosecutable criminal offense.
The amendment would add a new subsection to the Confidentiality Rule that would allow the lawyer to reveal confidential information that the lawyer deems reasonably necessary to respond to an allegation of criminal wrong doing posted on the internet by a former client.
The Committee plans to send the amendment to the Florida Bar Board of Governors. If approved, it may be one of the first state amendments to the confidentiality rule that directly addresses online criticism.
The Committee also plans to release Proposed Advisory Opinion 21-1 on negative online criticism to address and advise lawyers on responding to negative online criticism that is posted by a third party rather than a current or former client.
The draft of Opinion 21-1 remains in progress, but reports indicate that it will acknowledge that a lawyer does not have specific ethical duties to third party critics, but nonetheless must be wary about the third party’s potential relationship to a client, noting ABA Opinion 496. The Committee will likely reinforce its advice provided in Opinion 20-1 , which cautions that client confidences must not be revealed in an online response, but advises that a lawyer may state that the negative online allegations are not accurate or fair. The Committee plans to consider revisions to the Opinion 21-1 at its June meeting.
The Committee Chair, Michael Gelfand, noted that the ongoing attention to the issue of responding to online negative criticism reflects The Florida Bar’s ongoing commitment to evolve its thinking to align with the ever changing digital world. He stated, “When most of us became lawyers, we did not anticipate the vitriol we see online, and now we have to adjust our practices and rules to meet it.”
Read more about the Committee’s meeting here and stay tuned!
Online Vitriol: Amending Confidentiality Rule 4-1.6 and Proposed Opinion 21-1 on Third Party Criticism
At its recent meeting, The Florida Bar’s Professional Ethics Committee approved an amendment to Florida Bar Rule 4-1.6 Confidentiality that would provide a limited exception to permit lawyers to respond when they suffer an online vitriol attack from a former client that includes allegations of a prosecutable criminal offense.
The amendment would add a new subsection to the Confidentiality Rule that would allow the lawyer to reveal confidential information that the lawyer deems reasonably necessary to respond to an allegation of criminal wrong doing posted on the internet by a former client.
The Committee plans to send the amendment to the Florida Bar Board of Governors. If approved, it may be one of the first state amendments to the confidentiality rule that directly addresses online criticism.
The Committee also plans to release Proposed Advisory Opinion 21-1 on negative online criticism to address and advise lawyers on responding to negative online criticism that is posted by a third party rather than a current or former client.
The draft of Opinion 21-1 remains in progress, but reports indicate that it will acknowledge that a lawyer does not have specific ethical duties to third party critics, but nonetheless must be wary about the third party’s potential relationship to a client, noting ABA Opinion 496. The Committee will likely reinforce its advice provided in Opinion 20-1 , which cautions that client confidences must not be revealed in an online response, but advises that a lawyer may state that the negative online allegations are not accurate or fair. The Committee plans to consider revisions to the Opinion 21-1 at its June meeting.
The Committee Chair, Michael Gelfand, noted that the ongoing attention to the issue of responding to online negative criticism reflects The Florida Bar’s ongoing commitment to evolve its thinking to align with the ever changing digital world. He stated, “When most of us became lawyers, we did not anticipate the vitriol we see online, and now we have to adjust our practices and rules to meet it.”
Read more about the Committee’s meeting here and stay tuned!
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