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Legal Ethics and Professional Responsibility

Series

2018

Professional responsibility

Articles 1 - 2 of 2

Full-Text Articles in Law

Avoiding Ethics Complaints: Finding The Rules And Leos, Joyce Manna Janto Jan 2018

Avoiding Ethics Complaints: Finding The Rules And Leos, Joyce Manna Janto

Law Faculty Publications

One nightmare shared by all lawyers is the prospect of a letter from the Standing Committee on Lawyer Discipline informing them of a complaint. Prudent lawyers avoid this by becoming familiar with the ethical rules and standards of their jurisdiction. Because, as many a lawyer has learned, ignorance of the rules is no excuse.


The Paragraph 20 Paradox: An Evaluation Of The Enforcement Of Ethical Rules As Substantive Law, Donald E. Campbell Jan 2018

The Paragraph 20 Paradox: An Evaluation Of The Enforcement Of Ethical Rules As Substantive Law, Donald E. Campbell

Journal Articles

Paragraph 20 in the Scope section of the American Bar Association (ABA) Model Rules of Professional Conduct (Model Rules)-which most states have adopted-provides that a violation of the Model Rules "should not give rise to a cause of action against a lawyer[,] nor should it create any presumption in such a case that a legal duty has been breached." At the same time, Paragraph 20 provides that the Model Rules can be used as "evidence" of breach of a lawyer's standard of conduct. Thus, the Model Rules attempt to make it clear that ethical violations are distinct from substantive law …