Marketing is an integral part of the private practice of law.  But where is the line between permissible advertising tactics and impermissible solicitation?  Often it is hard to find guidance to tell you on which side of that line your marketing strategies fall.  The recent ABA Opinion 501 may help. It sets forth several hypotheticals…

What’s trending

The rapid evolution of technology over 2 years of COVID not only allows for a remote practice, but in many regards encourages it.  So much so that some firms are now hiring attorneys who will work primarily – if not exclusively – remotely.

The focus of regulators’ concerns is shifting less on where…

A Special Master has ordered Google to turn over supposedly “privileged” documents at issue in an NLRB dispute with former employees.  Whether it is upheld in this high-profile litigation or not, the ruling points out some significant misconceptions about privilege (and work product) held by many clients and some attorneys.

Anti-union campaign advice does not…

2021 was a whirlwind! Lawyers have had to be more flexible and resourceful than ever. It is the year that the ups and downs of the pandemic made it abundantly clear that this is more of a marathon than a sprint. While resilience can be invigorating, the challenges are ongoing. The stress of keeping up…

A Florida lawyer violated the ethics rules by texting his witness during a deposition, the Florida Supreme Court recently held.  The court imposed an even stiffer penalty than recommended.

Just the facts, ma’am  

In January 2020, the Florida Bar filed its Complaint against the lawyer for conduct during a telephone deposition in a worker’s…

Can violating a legal ethics rule qualify as an unfair trade practice under a state’s consumer protection statute?  A Florida district court recently said “Yes.” The question arose in motion practice over the admissibility of expert testimony in a timeshare-exit case.

And then there was one

A group of entities connected to Wyndham Vacation Resorts…

“Pervasive incivility” was part of a package of wrongdoing that resulted in disbarment for a D.C.-area lawyer last month.  The case sheds light on the potential, and very real, downsides when lawyers depart from professional conduct ideals.

Client authority lacking

The lawyer was admitted in Maryland and D.C., as well as Virginia, and his troubles…

Ethics authorities in New York and Georgia recently issued opposing opinions on whether lawyers can represent clients in navigating what Justice Clarence Thomas last month called the “half-in, half-out regime” related to both recreational and medical marijuana, “a contradictory and unstable state of affairs” that “conceals traps for the unwary.” The issue, which we have…

Two recent developments in states accounting for a hefty percentage of U.S. lawyers spotlight the profession’s move toward technology-based practice models that are untethered from physical offices.

In New York, the state senate last month unanimously passed a bill that would remove the requirement — dating to 1909 — that New York-licensed lawyers residing outside…