In November 2016, the DC Bar Legal Ethics Committee issued Ethics Opinion 370 (Social Media I) and 371 (Social Media II), which address the use of social media by lawyers for marketing and personal use and for providing legal services. The two opinions aim at increasing awareness of the ethical issues generating from the increasing use […]
Opinion No. 371 of the District of Columbia Bar’s Legal Ethics Committee Topic: Social Media II, Use of Social Media in Providing Legal Services Conclusion of the Committee: “Social media, like other technology applicable to the practice of law, will continue to change. The principles explained in this Opinion should be applied to […]
Opinion No. 370 of the District of Columbia Bar’s Legal Ethics Committee Topic: Social Media I, Marketing and Personal Use Conclusion of the Committee: “Social media is a constantly changing area of technology. Social media can be an effective tool for providing information to the public, for networking and for communications. However, using […]
ISBA Professional Conduct Advisory Opinion No. 16-06 Topic: Confidentiality; Conflicts of Interest Digest of the ISBA: A lawyer may use cloud-based services in the delivery of legal services provided that the lawyer takes reasonable measures to ensure that the client information remains confidential and is protected from breaches. The lawyer’s obligation to protect the […]
Committee on Professional Ethics Topic: “Record retention and electronic storage.” Digest of the Committee: “A law firm may scan original signed retainer agreements into the firm computer system and then destroy the original agreements, provided that the firm maintains the scanned copies for seven years after the events they record. Relevant Law: New York’s […]
On December 9, 2015, the Committee on Professional Ethics of the New York State Bar issued Opinion 1077 providing guidelines on how law firms should keep record of retainer and compensation agreements with clients. A law firm with “a high volume practice” that receives “thousands of signed retainer agreements” every year asked whether they “may […]
On September 22, 2015, the West Virginia Office of Disciplinary Counsel Legal Ethics issued a comprehensive opinion to provide the guidance for lawyers on the use of social media for both business and personal matters. West Virginia Office of Disciplinary Counsel Legal Ethics Opinion 2015-02 Lawyer Disciplinary Board – L.E.O. 2015-02 The Disciplinary Board provided […]
E-discovery is inseparable from the issue of ethics. Because lawyer duties and requirements permeate the realm of e-discovery, they invariably implicate lawyers’ ethical duties. This is illustrated by the fact that the most notorious e-discovery cases are ones where lawyers are heavily sanctioned – including referral to a state bar for disciplinary proceedings. This article […]
Read Part One II. Candor F.R.C.P. 26(g) has its own Rule-11-type signature provision for discovery requests, responses and objections. If the certification of truthfulness, completeness, and propriety in law and fact violates the rule “without substantial justification,” the court is required to impose “an appropriate sanction” on counsel, the represented party, or both. Additional requirements […]
Board of Professional Responsibility of the Supreme Court of Tennessee Topic: Lawyers’ use of cloud services From the opinion A lawyer may ethically allow confidential client information to be stored in “the cloud” if the lawyer takes reasonable care to assure that: (1) all such information or materials remain confidential; and (2) reasonable […]