It’s pretty circular for a legal blogger to write a blog post about — blogging. But bear with me: there’s a legal ethics issue in here. Thomson Reuters recently introduced a new product for busy lawyers who “do not have time to write articles,” but want to produce a blog. (Hat tip to @kevinokeefe over
Rule limiting lawyer claims of “expertise” is unconstitutional, says Florida district court
A Florida Bar rule blocking a personal injury law firm from stating that it specializes in mass-tort cases is unconstitutional as applied, a Florida federal district court recently held. The court enjoined the Florida Bar from enforcing its Rule 4-7.14(a)(4), which prohibits statements “that a lawyer is … a specialist, an expert, or other
LegalZoom GC sees self-help model as legal-services solution; others see problems
With the goal of positioning his on-line legal forms company as a solution to America’s access-to-justice problem, Chas Rampenthal, General Counsel of LegalZoom, zoomed through my home state last week, with two speaking engagements. I caught his speech at a breakfast meeting at my home-town bar association, the Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association (@clemetrobar).
A panacea
Keeping your client out of social media trouble — how far can you go?
Your domestic relations client has some really unfortunate Face Book posts that she put up before you filed for divorce on her behalf. Your personal injury client has some pictures on Instagram that seem to depict him riding a surfboard, despite his claimed injury. And your business client, charged with producing a defective product, has
Verizon says legal departments among most likely to fall for phishing scam
As Willie Sutton supposedly said, he robbed banks “because that’s where the money is.” That also explains why law firms and lawyers are increasingly the targets of cyber-intrusion, particularly phishing scams. Apparently, phishing in legal waters can yield a full net of stolen information.
“Most likely” to take the bait
Verizon’s 2015 Data Breach
Lawyers take note: Here comes the Internet of Things
This might be an odd confession for a blogger, but I’ve always been a little leery of technology. I’m not a Luddite, or anything, but I’m definitely a late adopter. So I’ve been following the buzz about the coming Internet of Things with some trepidation.
In case you’ve somehow missed it, the Internet
Duty of competence includes “reasonable diligence” in not falling for Internet scams, opinion holds
One of your ethical duties with respect to an Internet scam is to not fall for it, the Association of the Bar of the City of New York Committee on Professional Ethics has said in a new opinion.
Competent? Don’t fall for Nigerian check scam
The Committee considered the ethics rules that apply to
LinkedIn job references are not “consumer reports,” magistrate holds
LinkedIn has achieved remarkable market penetration among lawyers. Ninety-five percent of ABA members report that they have profiles. (Preceding link requires LEXIS subscription.) Many law firms turn to LinkedIn’s premium offering, “Reference Search,” to help them vet job candidates by finding references — others who have worked with candidates at their former firms. But
Blogs, texts, Facebook can raise marketing ethics issues for lawyers
What are the legal ethics rules for using social media to market your legal practice? Judging from what’s out there, some lawyers view the social media space as the Wild West, where almost anything goes; and some lawyers are too worried about the possible snares to use social media at all to publicize or share
Facebook message to unrepresented teen mother draws suspension
A lawyer made an emotional appeal to a teen mother via Facebook message, begging her not to consent to her baby’s adoption. The lawyer represented the baby’s biological father; the mother was not represented by counsel. The lawyer’s conduct drew harsh criticism and a six-month suspension from practice when the Kansas Supreme Court considered it