As AI technology continues to advance, providing greater efficiency and the ability to process extensive amounts of data, legal professionals are increasingly tempted to utilize Generative AI as a convenient shortcut for drafting legal motions and pleadings. However, lawyers must…
Ethical Duties in Handling Appeals: 2024 Edition
In pursuing an appeal on behalf of a client, a California lawyer must meet the requirements of the California Rules of Professional Conduct (“CRPC”) and the State Bar Act. The following summarizes some of those requirements and recent developments. Fundamentally,…
Using AI In Legal Work: COPRAC’s Tips On Confidentiality And Competence
As AI technology continues to advance, providing greater efficiency and the ability to process extensive amounts of data, legal professionals are increasingly tempted to utilize Generative AI as a convenient shortcut for drafting legal motions and pleadings. However, lawyers must…
How to Ethically Prepare a Witness
I offer this short primer on the ethics of preparing a witness as a teaser trailer to this year’s annual Legal Ethics Lessons Learned from Fictional Attorneys CLE, to be presented by the Ethics Committee of The Bar Association of…
Does Using a Social Media Ad Campaign to Market Legal Services Violate Ethics Rules?
Several social media sites, such as Meta and Twitter, have built-in ad managers that allow attorneys to pay to advertise their legal services using the social media platform. However, attorneys should proceed cautiously. Before using one of these social…
Lawyers – You Can’t Discriminate
The California Rules of Professional Conduct (“CRPC”) included a new rule in 2018 that prohibits attorneys from participating in discrimination, harassment and retaliation in representing a client. It also prohibits discrimination in the law firm’s operations. Specifically, CRPC 8.4.1 provides:…
Use it or Lose It: Take Advantage of Your Annual Insurance Risk Management Budget
California lawyers should have professional liability insurance to avoid paying damages and expenses out of pocket if a claim is asserted against them. Those who do not have insurance must disclose that fact to each client in writing at the…
Practical Ethics Tips for Remote Depositions
Before you conduct or defend your next remote deposition, be mindful of your ethical duties of Competence (Rule 1.1), Confidentiality (Rule 1.6), and Supervision (Rule 5.1), under the California Rules of Professional Conduct. Here are a few practical tips: 1.…
Representing Clients With Diminished Decision-Making Capacity
The State Bar of California Standing Committee on Professional Responsibility (COPRAC) recently published Formal Opinion 2021-207, addressing the ethical obligations of a lawyer who has a client with diminished decision-making capacity. Representing clients with diminished capacity involves unique challenges, including…
ABA Offers Tips for Effective Client-Lawyer Communications
On October 6, 2021, the American Bar Association issued Formal Opinion 500 addressing language access in the client-lawyer relationship. The Opinion notes: “Communication between a lawyer and a client is necessary for the client to participate effectively in the representation…
Lawyer Mobility: Duties to Clients When a Lawyer Leaves a Law Firm
A lawyer’s departure from a law firm can be disruptive to client relationships and representations. Generally, the client in ongoing matters must be given the choice between staying with the firm, going with the departing lawyer who handled the matter,…
The Ethics of Third-Party Litigation Funding
Photo: Michael J. Fox in The Good Wife. Credit: CBS. In the “Raw Deal” episode of The Good Wife, Louis Canning (played by fan favorite Michael J. Fox) shared privileged information with a litigation funding source about what his corporate client…