Legal Ethics Forum: Ethics

Home -> Law Blog Directory -> Ethics Blogs

OR PHONE (866) 635-1838 for Bankruptcy Help, (866) 635-6190 for Divorce,
(866) 635-2689 for Personal Injury or (866) 635-9402 for Criminal Defense

Find a Local Lawyer

Bankruptcy (866) 635-1838
Divorce (866) 635-6190
Personal Injury (866) 635-2689
Criminal Defense (866) 635-9402

Ethics

Legal Ethics Forum

Covering Legal Ethics

Post Frequency: 11.2/day

Last Entry: August 14, 2020 at 13:23:48

Larry Ribstein: "The Disgrace of the Legal Services Market"

Posted on October 01, 2010
At his Truth on the Market blog, Larry Ribstein severely criticizes the US legal profession for economic protectionism that prevents ordinary citizens from obtaining legal services. I largely agree. But I don't sense any consumer revolt brewing in the US,...

Legal Ethics Item (October 1, 2010)

Posted on October 01, 2010
Legal Profession Blog has the details on a North Dakota opinion holds that a lawyer representing himself pro se cannot directly contact an opposing party represented by counsel. Burdett v. Caselli: new, unpublished California Court of Appeal decision holding that...

People v. Vance: Prosecutor makes "in victim's shoes" argument, gets referred to the state bar

Posted on October 01, 2010
People v. Vance, a new California decision, reverses the conviction because of the prosecutor's improper arguments. I would have thought that every prosecutor -- and every newbie trial ad student -- would know that you can't make a "walk in...

Does anyone know of an article or case law....

Posted on September 30, 2010
on what if any conflicts may arise when a firm represents a client who is bidding in a single-winner auction and the firm either (a) concurrently is representing another client who is also bidder but using a different law firm...

To access this complete feed in the blog feed reader login or register for free.

Fine the victim? Hacked law firm may be fined for privacy breach

Posted on September 30, 2010
We previously discussed the UK firm that aggressively pursued copyright infringement claims -- and whose email system had been breached by hackers bent on revenge. The BBC has the news that the firm may be fined by UK privacy regulators....

Legal Ethics Items (September 30, 2010)

Posted on September 30, 2010
The Faculty Lounge: A call for papers related to Batson v. Kentucky. ABA Journal: JP Morgan decides to go slow on foreclosures until the issue of potentially false documents and court filings can be sorted out. Squire Sanders & Dempsey...

Everyone wants to be an adjunct?

Posted on September 30, 2010
According to this WSJ article, being an adjunct is a highly desired marker of prestige. I hadn't really thought of it that way. I imagine that of all the required courses at law school, professional responsibility has by far the...

Another conflicts issue concerning disclosures by lawyer-legislators

Posted on September 30, 2010
This time out of New Jersey. But we've seen this issue pop up with Trutanich, Gillibrand, and others. Legislators are increasingly under duties to disclose financial ties, but lawyers generally keep their mouths shut about such things. Clients have an...

ABA releases Formal Opinion 10-457 regarding lawyer websites; collateral fight breaks out over ABA's assertion of copyright

Posted on September 29, 2010
First, the new opinion is a must read. (it will apparently be posted some time Wednesday morning at the ABA's Center for Professional Responsibility.) I've only skimmed it and although it doesn't break new ground, it does helpfully discuss issues...

Legal Ethics Items (September 29, 2010)

Posted on September 29, 2010
Criminal Defense Weekly looks at an appellate case out of Tennessee, Smith v. Tennessee, where criminal defense counsel committed ineffective assistance by failing to investigate and present a motion to recuse the sentencing judge. How Appealing: Chief Justice Roberts sold...

Claim against insurance broker for negligent referral is rejected

Posted on September 29, 2010
Vorhees' New Jersey Legal Malpractice Blog has the details on a new unpublished decision from the USDC for the District of New Jersey.

In re Elrich: Maryland appellate court worries that ineffective assistance claim relied on coerced statement by public defender

Posted on September 28, 2010
Case here. In this dependency appeal, the appellate court credited the trial court's concern that the IAC statement by the trial lawyer from the OPD might have been coercively procured by someone who supervised that lawyer. But the appellate court...

Kentucky weighs in on Judges and Facebook

Posted on September 28, 2010
Can a judge have a facebook page? Maybe is the answer from Kentucky. The opinion is here.

West Virginia Supreme Court Judge Reverses Field, Recuses Himself

Posted on September 28, 2010
ALM's Blog of the Legal TImes: A West Virginia judge who had promised in an election campaign not to overturn damages caps has now recused himself from a matter raising that issue. This is the scenario we'll see more frequently...

Legal Ethics Items (September 28, 2010)

Posted on September 28, 2010
US v. Mayweather: The Ninth Circuit affirms the conviction and the trial court's decision not to permit defendant to back out of a plea. The key issue was whether defense counsel informed the client of the possibility of a motion...

Brad Wendel's "Lawyers and Fidelity to Law" is now shipping from amazon.com

Posted on September 27, 2010
Available at Amazon.com. The product description: Even lawyers who obey the law often seem to act unethically--interfering with the discovery of truth, subverting justice, and inflicting harm on innoce people. Standard arguments within legal ethics attempt to show why it...

Mayo study on ethics of medical school students

Posted on September 27, 2010
The Atlantic covers a new study about the ethics of medical school students. A med school dean discusses the gap between the ethics that are expressly taught and the "hidden curriculum" of med school, which is taught by the old...

Legal Ethics Items (September 27, 2010)

Posted on September 27, 2010
Law 360: "5 Legal Malpractice Cases to Watch" ALM: Law firm leaders express guarded optimism for 2011 financials. ALM: Winston Strawn was DQ'd from a huge case, and although the article isn't 100% clear, it looks as if it was...

AUSA who prosecuted Sen. Stevens commits suicide

Posted on September 27, 2010
The prosecutor, Nicholas Marsh, was facing a criminal contempt hearing arising from the handling of the Sen. Stevens prosecution. Main Justice has some details about the suicide, but presumably there will be follow up.

Interesting new article on digitalization of client files, migrating lawyers, disputes

Posted on September 27, 2010
Professor Hillman and Hinshaw Culbertson lawyer Allison Rhodes have published Client Files and Digital Law Practices: Rethinking Old Concepts in an Era of Lawyer Mobility, available here.

Legal Ethics Items (September 26, 2010)

Posted on September 26, 2010
California Attorney's Fees Blog discusses a new bankruptcy case reminding a lawyer that he represented the estate, not the debtor personally. Kennedy v. Gulf Coast Cancer & Diagnostic Center: an interesting fact pattern where in-house counsel wanted to retain and...

Rich Cassidy, on professionalism

Posted on September 26, 2010
Over at his site, On Lawyering.

Judge Porteous's trial

Posted on September 26, 2010
Notes from Times-Picayune reporter. It's not looking good for the judge in his impeachment trial.

Hackers exact revenge on hated law firm that prosecutes copyright infringement claims against file sharers

Posted on September 26, 2010
A UK law firm specializing in aggressive copyright enforcement litigation (some might say "mill") was hacked and a huge cache of its emails were posted publicly. More here. According to news accounts, all sorts of client confidences are now being...

Harrington v. Richter and the Criminal Defense Attorney's Obligation to Investigate

Posted on September 25, 2010
Recently I taught Strickland v. Washington in my Professional Responsibility course. This semester I'm using the Lerman and Schrag casebook, Ethical Problems in the Practice of Law, which includes some striking data in the notes and questions that follow the...

Legal Ethics Items (September 25, 2010)

Posted on September 25, 2010
Yesterday we posted a sympathetic account of law school clinics, from the ABA Journal Magazine. From Point of Law, here's a more critical view of an innovation in clinics. People v. Poduska: California Court of Appeal holds that prosecutor's closing....

New York State Bar Association Ethics Opinion on Social Media Investigations

Posted on September 25, 2010
The ethics opinion is here. The New York State Bar essentially supplements an earlier Philadelphia bar opinion, which says that lawyers cannot use deception to gain access to information contained on social media sites, like Facebook. The New York opinion...

Greg McNeal commenting on Keith Petty's view of the ethics of government lawyers working on national security matters, over at The Faculty Lounge

Posted on September 24, 2010
Greg McNeal's post. Keith Petty's paper. I've read the post but only skimmed the paper, so I don't have comments yet, but if you have any, wander over to The Faculty Lounge and join the conversation. The paper's title: "Professional...

Brad Wendel to speak at University of Southern Queensland (Sept. 28th)

Posted on September 24, 2010
Details here.

Worth reading: James Fischer, "Large Law Firm Lateral Hire Conflicts Checking: Professional Duty Meets Actual Practice"

Posted on September 24, 2010
Jim Fischer (Southwestern) did a lot of interviewing and fact gathering about processes that aren't often discussed openly in much detail. Article. Abstract:Lateral lawyer movement between private law firms has become an accepted practice. More than one-half of the lawyers...

Previous | Next

Related Law Bulletins

Update on AILF's Legal Action Center Visa Bulletin Litigation (Updated 7/10/07)
The following is the latest update from AILF regarding its pening ...

The Immigrant Legal Resource Center Legislative Forecast
The ILRC Forecast on Immigration ReformJudith Golub, Executive Dir...

The Christian Legal Society and "discrimation": Response to Susan
In response to Susan's post, I'm inclined to think that, yes, the ...

Stacy Scnheider Legal Commentator Apprentice

Catholic Legal Theory and life and death
Tom Berg’s question regarding the propriety or not of capital pu...