Legal Ethics and Professional Responsibility Commons^™

Comments Of A Commissioner, Peter D. Ehrenhaft

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

These comments are solely the views of Peter D. Ehrenhaft, one of the twelve members of the ABA Commission on Multijurisdictional Practice. They are not the official views of the Commission and, indeed, may be modified by the presenter based on the further information the Commission is now gathering from interested parties. These comments are intended to stimulate thought and discussion of the issues and to encourage all sectors of the profession to submit their views to the Commission. The final deadline for the submission of written materials for the Commission's consideration in the preparation of its Initial Draft Report …

The Professional Responsibility Of The Law Professor: Three Neglected Questions, Monroe H. Freedman

Vanderbilt Law Review

Law professors have a great deal to say about the ethics of law practitioners. We write law review articles about lawyers' professional responsibilities, and we have participated in drafting codes of conduct for practicing lawyers.

Many of us bring to that task a significant perspective. We can be both informed about and detached from the pressures of daily practice. We are free of involvement or (worse yet) identification with particular clients. Indeed, in choosing to become law professors, we have made the choice to dissociate ourselves from contact with clients.

Not surprisingly, therefore, most law professors tend to minimize the …

Professional Competence And Social Responsibility: Fulfilling The Vanderbilt Vision, Sandra D. O'Connor

Vanderbilt Law Review

In our laudable attempt to train law students to "think like lawyers" by teaching them legal method, we must not lose sight of the fact that questions of professional responsibility cannot properly be resolved with the same legal framework of analysis. Rather,we must see that as professionals with almost exclusive access to our system of justice, we have moral responsibilities totally outside the scope of the legal rules, and not amenable to analysis in terms of legal method. It is time to return to consideration of the moral and spiritual foundations of our legal system. It is time to train …