The scope of the “no-contact rule” — barring a lawyer from communicating with represented persons — is spotlighted in a disqualification ruling that a Florida district court handed down earlier this month. The opinion is a reminder that the prohibition against contact (without permission of the person’s counsel) extends only to “the subject of the
On-line review response by rogue consultant leads to suspension for OK lawyer
An Oklahoma lawyer was suspended last month for two years based on misconduct involving an unlawful response to a bad on-line review of the lawyer’s services. The disciplinary case is a lesson in being careful about who you’re dealing with when you hire a consultant, and also about not doubling down when confronted with a
In narrow ruling, law firm escapes liability for not thwarting real estate cyber-scam
In a narrow ruling last month by a sharply-divided West Virginia high court, a law firm escaped liability for failing to prevent a phishing/spoofing scheme that resulted in more than $266,000 in closing funds being wired to scammers, after they impersonated plaintiffs’ real estate agent. The opinion is part of the developing law on lawyer
Reasons for lawyers to be thankful again this year
With the coronavirus pandemic surging across the US and around the world, my family, along with millions of other Americans, will be sacrificing our usual Thanksgiving celebration in order to stay safe and to help prevent the spread of COVID-19. If you’re a lawyer who’s in the same boat, I hope that, like me,
Business transaction with client violated ethics rules and voided fee agreement, Fifth Circuit holds
Needing to adjust the basis of your legal fee mid-stream is a fairly common occurrence. When a matter becomes more complicated than you originally contemplated, or for other reasons, the fee agreement you entered into with the client at the beginning may become unworkable before the matter is over.
But renegotiating fees with an existing
Lawyer avoids 6th Circuit sanctions; stay-at-home order might have limited his access to record
The plaintiff’s lawyer in a slip-and-fall case got a pandemic-based pass from the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals last week, avoiding sanctions that the defendant requested after the lawyer misstated the record. The lawyer had based the plaintiff’s appeal argument on an unsigned interrogatory answer that appeared only in a draft.
But the court in
Playing away from home: Do lawyers charged with legal mal have to defend suits out of state?
Legal malpractice plaintiffs fended off motions to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction in two separate cases, in two different jurisdictions, under opinions that happened to be filed on the same day last week. The opinions, from a New Jersey state appeals court and a North Carolina federal district court, stand as a warning
COVID-ethics: NY okays withdrawal from representation based on fear of infection
Can you ethically withdraw from representing a client if you fear contracting COVID-19 as a result of some aspect of the representation? Earlier this month, the New York State Bar Association issued an ethics opinion that said “Yes,” provided that the lawyer gets any necessary permission from a tribunal. While advisory for New York lawyers
Your Florida house is safe!
Are you a snow bird? Do you or one of your partners have a second home in Florida? Many do, and it’s long been a source of anxiety that working remotely from that home might be a problem. After all, many of those doing client work while in the Sunshine State are not licensed to
Zoom-bombing at court hearing for accused Twitter hacker highlights duty of tech competence
The blogosphere lit up last week with news that a Florida state court bail hearing for an accused Twitter hacker had been disrupted by a pornographic Zoom-bomb that highjacked the proceedings and beamed sexual images onto viewers screens. (Some coverage here and here, but don’t worry, no pictures.) The seventeen-year-old defendant is accused of