July 2019

Many litigation lawyers know about the “litigation privilege” (sometimes called the “judicial privilege”).  The doctrine operates to immunize lawyers from liability for statements  made during the litigation process that are related to the litigation, even if they injure an opposing party.  (Here’s a 2015 Hofstra Law Review article that provides an overview.)

But lawyers

Today marks the fifth anniversary of this blog’s debut.

It’s been a wonderful ride. Waking up every Sunday morning (OK, most Sunday mornings), grabbing a cup of java, and writing 600 words about the latest in legal ethics might not be everyone’s idea of fun. But I’ve loved it.

Over the last half-decade our 230-some

As we’ve noted before (here and here), the ethical duty of confidentiality is broad, and can even cover publicly available information.  Now comes a reminder that based on the confidentiality rule you should obtain consent  before using your client’s name in marketing materials — and that some jurisdictions go even farther.  For instance,

“DQ” at this time of year makes me think of drive-in ice-cream cones.  But I actually mean “DQ” as in “disqualification,” and instead of sugar cones, it points to an interesting case involving some take-home lessons about conflicts of interest.

Crisis of unhoused residents

California’s massive homelessness problem has been the subject of several federal