As we welcome 2026 with high hopes and new resolutions, let’s review some highlights from 2025 and consider practices that should be carried forward into the new year and those which should be left behind.
Ethics Opinions Issued in 2025
In Texas Ethics Opinion 701, the Professional Ethics Committee concluded that an attorney
We recently discussed the ethics rules that lawyers must bear in mind when trying to attract new clients through social media channels. Practitioners may find it difficult to avoid social media in their daily practice. There are many traps for the unwary when using social media in the context of litigation. It is worthwhile for
Lawyers sometimes forget that, as the American Bar Association has noted, we cannot “take off the lawyer hat” to circumvent ethics rules. Likewise, lawyers are not any less susceptible to discipline for ethics violations just because their conduct takes place on social media instead of the courtroom. These are important rules to keep in
The North Carolina Business Court recently issued an order revoking the pro hac vice admission of a Florida attorney and barring him from practicing in North Carolina courts for an entire year. The order arose from a series of misrepresentations and failures to correct inaccuracies made in connection with pro hac vice applications, as well
While perceptions and descriptions may vary, the term “unworthy client” generally includes dishonest clients whose lawyers get entangled in their client’s web of deceit. Even reputable law firms can easily become entangled with dubious clients if they aren’t paying close enough attention. Not surprisingly, lawyers and firms caught up in these situations are
For decades, commentators and practitioners have bemoaned the deteriorating level of collegiality in the practice of law. But at the same time, popular culture and advertising have glorified (and financially rewarded) lawyers with a pugilistic character. And research suggests that bullying can go on as much within a firm as between them. Do we have
A recent decision from North Carolina highlights the complications faced by disciplinary authorities in dealing with the ever-increasing number of attorneys working “remotely” in other jurisdictions.
A New York licensed attorney living in North Carolina was nearly disbarred until the North Carolina appellate court reversed the disbarment orders of the North Carolina Discipline Hearing Commission
In the days of yore, lawyers were generally viewed as a socially “conservative” group not likely to seek attention or say controversial or unkind things in public. Those days are, of course, long gone. Today many lawyers go out of their way to say things that are intended to draw attention and address controversial topics.
The ABA Standing Committee on Ethics and Professional Responsibility, (the Committee”) recently issued Formal Opinion 508—which highlights the differences between proper witness preparation and unethical “coaching.” The Opinion also sheds light on how remote platforms have paved the way for easier and less detectable means of improper coaching.
What is allowed?
Discussing testimony with
Your client has just been sentenced as a first-time DWI offender earlier this morning. Later in the afternoon, you are in another courthouse. Your same client is facing sentencing for another DWI. The driver’s abstract has not yet been updated to reflect that, based on the morning’s plea, your client is no longer a first-time