Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Law Commons

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Articles 1 - 30 of 63

Full-Text Articles in Law

Toward More Robust Self-Regulation Within The Legal Profession, Veronica Root Martinez, Caitlin-Jean Juricic Jan 2022

Toward More Robust Self-Regulation Within The Legal Profession, Veronica Root Martinez, Caitlin-Jean Juricic

Faculty Scholarship

The Trump Administration left reverberations throughout American life, and the legal profession was not insulated from its impact. The conduct of lawyers—both public and private—working on behalf of former President Trump was the subject of constant conversation and critique. The reality, however, is that the questions regarding the conduct of the Trump Administration lawyers, are rooted, in part, in more fundamental questions about the appropriate role of the lawyer within society. This Essay advocates for the adoption of a self-regulation scheme whereby lawyers regulate and oversee the conduct of other lawyers, to ensure that members of the legal profession are …


The Role Of Norms In Modern-Day Government Ethics, Veronica Root Martinez Jan 2021

The Role Of Norms In Modern-Day Government Ethics, Veronica Root Martinez

Faculty Scholarship

Many scholars, policymakers, advocacy groups, members of the media, and citizens-at-large are lamenting the perceived decrease in adherence to norms and ethics by certain government officials over the past few years. Informal mechanisms—whether they be norms, ethics, customs, or a “gentleman’s word”—have long been relied upon to ensure certain standards of behavior within all aspects of society. The American government is no exception. From America’s founding, the rule of law created the backstop for its governmental processes, but the virtue of its leaders remained a constant component of its success. To be fair, the country has seen more than its …


The Essential Monroe Freedman, In Four Works, Michael E. Tigar Jan 2016

The Essential Monroe Freedman, In Four Works, Michael E. Tigar

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.


Advocacy In The Media: The Blagojevich Defense And A Reformulation Of Rule 3.6, Leigh A. Krahenbuhl Oct 2011

Advocacy In The Media: The Blagojevich Defense And A Reformulation Of Rule 3.6, Leigh A. Krahenbuhl

Duke Law Journal

The current ethical rule governing lawyers' interactions with the media applies equally to defense attorneys and prosecutors despite their different roles and responsibilities in the justice system. With a focus on the Blagojevich trial as an example of modern lawyers' interactions with the press, this Note argues for a separate rule governing defense lawyers' extrajudicial speech. Such a rule would recognize an interest in protecting the legitimacy of the justice system and would provide clear standards to guide defense lawyers' advocacy outside of the courtroom. This Note provides an overview of the development of the trial-publicity rules, a glimpse of …


Crisis In The Legal Profession: Don’T Mourn, Organize!, Michael E. Tigar Jan 2011

Crisis In The Legal Profession: Don’T Mourn, Organize!, Michael E. Tigar

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.


Advice And Complicity, Matthew A. Smith Nov 2010

Advice And Complicity, Matthew A. Smith

Duke Law Journal

No abstract provided.


A Tale Of Two Judges : A Judge Advocate’S Reflections On Judge Gonzales’S Apologia, Charles J. Dunlap Jr. Jan 2010

A Tale Of Two Judges : A Judge Advocate’S Reflections On Judge Gonzales’S Apologia, Charles J. Dunlap Jr.

Faculty Scholarship

This is a response to - and reflection about - Judge Alberto Gonzales's essay in the Texas Tech Law Review entitled "Waging War Within the Constitution" 42 Tex. Tech. L. Rev. 843 (2010). It argues that national security law policy in an era of complex challenges is best designed when the expertise of the widest number of knowledgeable practictioners is brought to bear in a principled and fearless manner.


“The Judge Said, ‘Son, What Is Your Alibi …?” A Survey Of Alaska Criminal Discovery Principles, James Fayette Jun 2009

“The Judge Said, ‘Son, What Is Your Alibi …?” A Survey Of Alaska Criminal Discovery Principles, James Fayette

Alaska Law Review

No abstract provided.


Milberg’S Monopoly: Restoring Honesty And Competition To The Plaintiffs’ Bar, James P. Mcdonald Dec 2008

Milberg’S Monopoly: Restoring Honesty And Competition To The Plaintiffs’ Bar, James P. Mcdonald

Duke Law Journal

When the renowned plaintiffs' firm Milberg Weiss was indicted in 2006 for paying kickbacks to clients, most commentators saw the scandal as the product of five dishonest lawyers. This Note argues that the causes were more complex than the moral shortcomings of a few attorneys; rather, the kickbacks were but one symptom of a deeply flawed system for selecting lead counsel in securities class action lawsuits. Although the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 attempted to curb abusive behavior by the plaintiffs' bar, its focus on reforming plaintiff behavior meant that attorneys were left relatively free to continue using …


The Legal Ethics Of Pediatric Research, Doriane Lambelet Coleman Dec 2007

The Legal Ethics Of Pediatric Research, Doriane Lambelet Coleman

Duke Law Journal

Since the mid- to late 1990s, the scientific and medical research community has sought to increase its access to healthy children for research protocols that involve harm or a risk of harm. This move reverses longstanding policy within that community generally to exclude healthy children from such protocols on the grounds that the research as to them is non-therapeutic, that they are particularly vulnerable to research-related abuses, and that they are unable themselves to give informed consent to their participation. The research community's new posture has been supported by prominent pediatric bioethicists who have argued that unless healthy children are …


Reining In The Minister Of Justice: Prosecutorial Oversight And The Superseder Power, Abby L. Dennis Oct 2007

Reining In The Minister Of Justice: Prosecutorial Oversight And The Superseder Power, Abby L. Dennis

Duke Law Journal

Virtually immune from judicial sanction, professional discipline, and civil liability, prosecutors enjoy limitless, unmonitored, and, for the most part, unreviewable power. This power and insulation from review invite abuse and public mistrust, shaking confidence in the criminal justice system. With the system in need of a means of curbing errant prosecutors and restoring public confidence, this Note explores a neglected mechanism of prosecutorial oversight-the superseder power-and argues for increased use of this oversight mechanism, coupled with explicit guidelines for its use and a public review process.


Genetic Predictions Of Future Dangerousness: Is There A Blueprint For Violence?, Erica Beecher-Monas, Edgar Garcia-Rill Apr 2006

Genetic Predictions Of Future Dangerousness: Is There A Blueprint For Violence?, Erica Beecher-Monas, Edgar Garcia-Rill

Law and Contemporary Problems

Beecher-Monas and Garcia-Rill consider the unfortunate probability that behavioral genetics evidence will be misused to substantiate predictions of future dangerousness.


Use Of Lawyer-Client Privileged Information By In-House Counsel Whistleblowers In Their Own Retaliatory Discharge Actions Under The Environmental Laws, David A. Drachsler Oct 2004

Use Of Lawyer-Client Privileged Information By In-House Counsel Whistleblowers In Their Own Retaliatory Discharge Actions Under The Environmental Laws, David A. Drachsler

Duke Environmental Law & Policy Forum

No abstract provided.


The Qualified Legal Compliance Committee: Using The Attorney Conduct Rules To Restructure The Board Of Directors, Jill E. Fisch, Caroline M. Gentile Nov 2003

The Qualified Legal Compliance Committee: Using The Attorney Conduct Rules To Restructure The Board Of Directors, Jill E. Fisch, Caroline M. Gentile

Duke Law Journal

The Securities and Exchange Commission introduced a new corporate governance structure, the qualified legal compliance committee, as part of the professional standards of conduct for attorneys mandated by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002. QLCCs are consistent with the Commission's general approach to improving corporate governance through specialized committees of independent directors. This Article suggests, however, that assessing the benefits and costs of creating QLCCs may be more complex than is initially apparent. Importantly, QLCCs are unlikely to be effective in the absence of incentives for active director monitoring. This Article concludes by considering three ways of increasing these incentives.


Inadvertent Disclosure, The Attorney-Client Privilege, And Legal Ethics: An Examination And Suggestion For Alaska, Joshua K. Simko Dec 2002

Inadvertent Disclosure, The Attorney-Client Privilege, And Legal Ethics: An Examination And Suggestion For Alaska, Joshua K. Simko

Alaska Law Review

No abstract provided.


Rational Expectations Of Leniency: Implicit Plea Agreements And The Prosecutor’S Role As A Minister Of Justice, Eli Paul Mazur Feb 2002

Rational Expectations Of Leniency: Implicit Plea Agreements And The Prosecutor’S Role As A Minister Of Justice, Eli Paul Mazur

Duke Law Journal

No abstract provided.


Unconscionable Lawyers, Paul D. Carrington Jan 2002

Unconscionable Lawyers, Paul D. Carrington

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.


Informal Aggregation: Procedural And Ethical Implications Of Coordination Among Counsel In Related Lawsuits, Howard M. Erichson Nov 2000

Informal Aggregation: Procedural And Ethical Implications Of Coordination Among Counsel In Related Lawsuits, Howard M. Erichson

Duke Law Journal

Even when related claims are not aggregated by any formal procedural mechanism, the lawyers involved in the separate lawsuits often coordinate their efforts. Such "informal aggregation" raises important questions about the boundaries of a dispute and the boundaries of the lawyer-client relationship. As an ethical matter, the central question is whether a lawyer owes ethical duties to a coordinating lawyer's client. Looking at confidentiality, loyalty, conflicts of interest, and malpractice, Professor Erichson suggests that ethical safeguards for clients of coordinating lawyers are neither strong enough nor explicit enough to provide adequate protection, and the problem inheres in the nature of …


Litigators’ Ethics, Michael E. Tigar Jan 2000

Litigators’ Ethics, Michael E. Tigar

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.


Lawyers Amid The Redemption Of The South, Paul D. Carrington Jan 2000

Lawyers Amid The Redemption Of The South, Paul D. Carrington

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.


The Defense Of Necessity Considered From The Legal And Moral Points Of View, George C. Christie Mar 1999

The Defense Of Necessity Considered From The Legal And Moral Points Of View, George C. Christie

Duke Law Journal

Questions concerning the scope of the defense of necessity frequently arise in a variety of legal and philosophical discussions. Professor Christie grapples with the questions raised by this defense: When can property be taken or destroyed to save human life? Must compensation always be paid? Can one destroy the property of others to save one's own property? Can one kill an innocent person to save the lives of a greater number of people? Professor Christie submits that much of the discussion of these difficult questions is too abstract and based on too cursory a review of the few legal authorities …


The President As Client And The Ethics Of The President’S Lawyers, Nelson Lund Apr 1998

The President As Client And The Ethics Of The President’S Lawyers, Nelson Lund

Law and Contemporary Problems

The ethics and control of politically appointed lawyers are discussed.


The Ethics Of Representing Elected Representatives, Kathleen Clark Apr 1998

The Ethics Of Representing Elected Representatives, Kathleen Clark

Law and Contemporary Problems

Clark attempts to sketch out the work of several different types of legislative lawyers. He suggests that the role of lawyers who work for individual legislators may be similar to that of Executive Branch lawyers.


Hell, Handbaskets, And Government Lawyers: The Duty Of Loyalty And Its Limits, Michael Stokes Paulsen Jan 1998

Hell, Handbaskets, And Government Lawyers: The Duty Of Loyalty And Its Limits, Michael Stokes Paulsen

Law and Contemporary Problems

Paulsen provides an autobiographical and a conjectural account of cases of personal and professional dilemmas of government lawyers.


“For The United States”: Government Lawyers In Court, Patricia M. Wald Jan 1998

“For The United States”: Government Lawyers In Court, Patricia M. Wald

Law and Contemporary Problems

Wald provides a largely impressionistic view of governmental layering in court.


Silence Is Not Golden: Protecting Lawyer Speech Under The First Amendment, Erwin Chemerinsky Jan 1998

Silence Is Not Golden: Protecting Lawyer Speech Under The First Amendment, Erwin Chemerinsky

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.


Searching For Peace And Achieving Justice: The Need For Accountability, M. Cherif Bassiouni Oct 1996

Searching For Peace And Achieving Justice: The Need For Accountability, M. Cherif Bassiouni

Law and Contemporary Problems

Despite a high level of mass violence in the post-war years, there have been few prosecutions at the international or national level. Impunity for such crimes is a betrayal of human solidarity with the victims.


Instructing Judges: Ethical Experience And Educational Technique, Cynthia Gray, Frances Kahn Zemans Jul 1995

Instructing Judges: Ethical Experience And Educational Technique, Cynthia Gray, Frances Kahn Zemans

Law and Contemporary Problems

Most professional responsibility textbooks do not discuss judicial conduct, and not surprisingly, many judges find themselves unprepared for the ethical dilemmas they face when they make the transition from partisan advocate to neutral arbiter. Gray and Zemans discuss the nine-topic curriculum for judicial educators to use to teach judicial ethics to judges at programs for new judges, continuing judicial education courses and judicial conferences.


Annotated Bibliography Of Educational Materials On Legal Ethics, Deborah L. Rhode Jul 1995

Annotated Bibliography Of Educational Materials On Legal Ethics, Deborah L. Rhode

Law and Contemporary Problems

Rhode presents an annotated bibliography that includes references to written and audiovisual materials for legal ethics courses and curricular integration projects.


Contextualizing Professional Responsibility: A New Curriculum For A New Century, Mary C. Daly, Bruce A. Green, Russell G. Pearce Jul 1995

Contextualizing Professional Responsibility: A New Curriculum For A New Century, Mary C. Daly, Bruce A. Green, Russell G. Pearce

Law and Contemporary Problems

Daly et al assert that professional responsibility has matured as a subject matter to the point where a new genre of courses should join the pervasive method and the traditional survey course. The new age of professaional responsibility will reflect intellectual maturity through the introduction of contextual course that are designed to nurture the development of reflective ethical judgment.