The use of contract attorneys is commonplace in the practice of law today. Large law firms and solo practitioners utilize contract attorneys to supplement their own staff resources for transactional and litigation tasks. Despite a general requirement that a client…
Attorney-Client Billing Statements Are Protected By Attorney-Client Privilege Regardless of Whether They Contain Legal Opinions or Advice
As a matter of first impression, the Court of Appeal recently held in County of Los Angeles Board of Supervisors v. Superior Court of Los Angeles County (ACLU), 235 Cal.App.4th 1154 (2015) that invoices confidentially transmitted from an attorney to…
May a California lawyer ethically represent a client in respect to a medical marijuana enterprise in California?
Recognizing the conundrum that conflicting state and federal laws create in California in light of the Compassionate Use Act, The Bar Association of San Francisco Legal Ethics Committee composed the first bar association opinion on ethical considerations for California attorneys…
Legal Ethics Corner: Attorneys Serving as Investigators Beware
Attorneys investigating matters in connection with the rendering of legal services to their clients is nothing new. California Code of Civil Procedure section 128.7 requires considerable due diligence before filing a lawsuit. In addition to such routine and ancillary inquiries,…
Does the Duty of Confidentiality Prevent an Attorney from Disclosing a Former Client’s Confidences in a Fee Collection Action?
Occasionally an attorney must sue a former client to collect outstanding fees and costs. Often the evidence critical to the attorney’s claim includes the secrets of the former client. May the attorney reveal those confidences necessary to prosecute the collection…
Legal Ethics Community Will Greatly Miss Paul Vapnek
The Bar Association of San Francisco’s Legal Ethics Committee sends our heartfelt sympathies to the friends and family of Paul Vapnek, a renowned legal ethics and intellectual property lawyer, who passed away on February 28, 2015. After clerking for U.S.…
Legal Ethics Corner: California Court of Appeal Upholds “In-Firm” Privilege
California recently joined a growing list of states that have issued published opinions recognizing an in-firm privilege. See, e.g., Moore v. Grau, 2014 N.H. Super. LEXIS 20 (N.H. Super. Ct. Dec. 15, 2014); Crimson Trace Corp. v. Davis Wright Tremaine…
New Civility Guidelines for Professional Conduct
In June 2014, the federal courts of the Northern District of California adopted “Guidelines for Professional Conduct,” also called “Civility Guidelines.” The Guidelines describe an attorney’s “duty of professionalism” as including “civility, professional integrity, personal dignity, candor, diligence, respect, courtesy,…
Legal Ethics Hotline: Get Help and/or Give Help
One highly valued offering of The Bar Association of San Francisco is its Legal Ethics Committee Hotline. The hotline is staffed by volunteers from the Legal Ethics Committee, many of whom have legal practices that regularly involve professional responsibility, legal…
Legal Ethics: Some Thoughts On Issues Raised, But Not Resolved, By Cassel v. Superior Court
The Supreme Court in Cassel v. Superior Court (2011) 51 Cal.4th 113, 244 P.3d 1080, held that evidence of what occurred during or in preparation for mediation in a case is, pursuant to Evidence Code § 1115, et seq., inadmissible…
Legal Ethics Corner: Revisiting the “No Contact” Rule
Attorneys are generally aware that they are prohibited from directly or indirectly contacting an opposing party that is represented by counsel without that counsel’s consent. This prohibition is found in California Rule 2-100 of the Rules of Professional Conduct (“Rule…
Legal Ethics Corner: Your Client Has Dementia. Now What?
Can an attorney call adult protective services (APS) when the attorney’s client has dementia and needs protection, but has not expressly authorized the APS call? Under certain circumstances, yes. One of the most difficult things for counsel to see is…