Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
- Institution
- Publication Year
Articles 1 - 27 of 27
Full-Text Articles in Law
The Fall Of An American Lawyer, Michael Ariens
The Fall Of An American Lawyer, Michael Ariens
Faculty Articles
John Randall is the only former president of the American Bar Association to be disbarred. He wrote a will for a client, Lovell Myers, with whom Randall had been in business for over a quarter-century. The will left all of Myers’s property to Randall, and implicitly disinherited his only child, Marie Jensen. When Jensen learned of the existence of a will, she sued to set it aside. She later filed a complaint with the Iowa Committee on Professional Ethics and Conduct. That complaint was the catalyst leading to Randall’s disbarment.
Randall had acted grievously in serving as Lovell Myers’s attorney. …
The Appearance Of Appearances, Michael Ariens
The Appearance Of Appearances, Michael Ariens
Faculty Articles
The Framers argued judicial independence was necessary to the success of the American democratic experiment. Independence required judges possess and act with integrity. One aspect of judicial integrity was impartiality. Impartial judging was believed crucial to public confidence that the decisions issued by American courts followed the rule of law. Public confidence in judicial decision making promoted faith and belief in an independent judiciary. The greater the belief in the independent judiciary, the greater the chance of continued success of the republic.
During the nineteenth century, state constitutions, courts, and legislatures slowly expanded the instances in which a judge was …
Anti-Discrimination Ethics Rules And The Legal Profession, Michael Ariens
Anti-Discrimination Ethics Rules And The Legal Profession, Michael Ariens
Faculty Articles
“Reputation ought to be the perpetual subject of my Thoughts, and Aim of my Behaviour. How shall I gain a Reputation! How shall I Spread an Opinion of myself as a Lawyer of distinguished Genius, Learning, and Virtue.” So wrote twenty-four-year-old John Adams in his diary in 1759. He had been a licensed lawyer for just three years at that time and had already believed himself to be hounded by “Petty foggers” and “dirty Dablers in the Law”—unlicensed attorneys who, Adams claimed, fomented vexatious litigation for the fees they might earn.
Adams believed his embrace of virtue, along with genius …
Model Rule 8.4(G) And The Profession's Core Values Problem, Michael Ariens
Model Rule 8.4(G) And The Profession's Core Values Problem, Michael Ariens
Faculty Articles
Model Rule 8.4(g) declares it misconduct for a lawyer to "engage in conduct that the lawyer knows or reasonably should know is harassment or discrimination on the basis of race, sex, religion, national origin, ethnicity, disability, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status or socioeconomic status in conduct related to the practice of law." The American Bar Association (ABA) adopted the rule in 2016, in large part to effectuate the third of its four mission goals: Eliminate Bias and Enhance Diversity. The ABA adopted these goals in 2008, and they continue to serve as ABA's statement of its mission.
A …
Law Schools Harm Genizaros And Other Indigenous People By Misunderstanding Aba Policy, Bill Piatt, Moises Gonzales, Katja Wolf
Law Schools Harm Genizaros And Other Indigenous People By Misunderstanding Aba Policy, Bill Piatt, Moises Gonzales, Katja Wolf
Faculty Articles
Law schools justifiably seek to enroll a diverse student body in order to enrich the academic experience and environment, and to provide attorneys who will serve all segments of our society. American law schools enjoy the constitutional right to maintain such diversity. Indeed, accreditation standards promulgated by the American Bar Association ("ABA") require it. The Association of American Law Schools carries a similar mandate.
In seeking to create a diverse student body, law schools offer applicants the opportunity to identify their backgrounds. There generally is no "diversity police" checking on the accuracy of the self-identification as a member of a …
Ethics In The Legal Industry, Michael Ariens
Ethics In The Legal Industry, Michael Ariens
Faculty Articles
A brief item in the Hearsay section of the June 2017 ABA Journal was headlined "2%." This number indicated an increase in the percentage of lawyers, from 2012 to 2016, "who worked remotely within the legal industry." Making one's "office" a location other than the physical space leased or owned by oneself or by an employer is hardly news, even as applied to the work of lawyers. Lawyers know as well as anyone that technology allows one to work almost anywhere and, unfortunately, almost any time. What is striking in this brief news item is the use by the flagship …
The Paragraph 20 Paradox: An Evaluation Of The Enforcement Of Ethical Rules As Substantive Law, Donald E. Campbell
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 …
Lawyers Without Rights: Jewish Lawyers In Germany Under The Third Reich: An Exhibition At Roger Williams University School Of Law, Roger Williams University School Of Law
Lawyers Without Rights: Jewish Lawyers In Germany Under The Third Reich: An Exhibition At Roger Williams University School Of Law, Roger Williams University School Of Law
School of Law Conferences, Lectures & Events
No abstract provided.
Technology And Client Communications: Preparing Law Students And New Lawyers To Make Choices That Comply With The Ethical Duties Of Confidentiality, Competence, And Communication, Kristin J. Hazelwood
Technology And Client Communications: Preparing Law Students And New Lawyers To Make Choices That Comply With The Ethical Duties Of Confidentiality, Competence, And Communication, Kristin J. Hazelwood
Law Faculty Scholarly Articles
That the use of technology has radically changed the legal profession is beyond dispute. Through technology, lawyers can now represent clients in faraway states and countries, and they can represent even local clients through a “virtual law office.” Gone are the times in which the lawyer’s choices for communicating with clients primarily involve preparing formal business letters to convey advice, holding in-person client meetings in the office, or conducting telephone calls with clients on landlines from the confines of the lawyer’s office. Not only do lawyers have choices about how to communicate with their clients, but they also frequently choose …
Ethics 20/20 Successfully Achieved Its Mission: It "Protected, Preserved, And Maintained", James E. Moliterno
Ethics 20/20 Successfully Achieved Its Mission: It "Protected, Preserved, And Maintained", James E. Moliterno
Scholarly Articles
The legal profession tends to look inward and backward when faced with crisis and uncertainty. The legal profession could make greater advances by looking outward and forward to find in society and culture the causes of and connections with the legal profession’s crises. Doing so would allow the profession to grow with society, solve problems with rather than against the flow of society, and be more attuned to the society the profession claims to serve.
Law School Marketing And Legal Ethics, Ben L. Trachtenberg
Law School Marketing And Legal Ethics, Ben L. Trachtenberg
Faculty Publications
Law schools have misled prospective students for years about the value of legal education. In some cases, law school officials have engaged in outright deceit, knowingly spreading false information about their schools. More commonly, they have presented statistics — especially those concerning the employment outcomes of law graduates — in ways nearly guaranteed to confuse readers. These deceptions and sharp practices violate the norms of the legal profession, a profession that scrupulously regulates the advertising of legal services. The deceptions also violate ethical rules prohibiting lawyers from engaging in dishonesty, misrepresentation, and deceit. This article exposes how pitches aimed at …
Regulators, Mount Up, Ben L. Trachtenberg
Regulators, Mount Up, Ben L. Trachtenberg
Faculty Publications
Since I began circulating drafts of an article arguing that certain law school officials have exposed themselves to professional discipline by engaging in dishonest marketing tactics, responses have varied considerably. Everyone seems to agree, however, that law school officials should not lie in their pursuit of students. There also appears to be broad consensus that misleading (albeit not intentionally false) marketing—such as systematically skewed salary statistics—is an unfortunate phenomenon, although disagreement remains on just how serious a problem it is and what level of corrective effort is appropriate. In their recently-published response pieces, Kyle McEntee of Law School Transparency (“LST”) …
“Playing Chicken": An Instant History Of The Battle Over Exceptions To Client Confidentiality, Michael S. Ariens
“Playing Chicken": An Instant History Of The Battle Over Exceptions To Client Confidentiality, Michael S. Ariens
Faculty Articles
The purpose of my essay Playing Chicken: An Instant History of the Battle over Exceptions to Client Confidentiality, is to offer a pointillist history of the recent battles between the ABA and the federal government concerning 1) when lawyers may or must disclose client confidences, and 2) claims that the federal government is attacking the attorney-client privilege. In doing so, I hope to explain how this battle is representative of the current drift in the American legal profession.
After the Introduction, the essay unfolds as follows: Section II traces the ABA’s often schizophrenic understanding of the duty of confidentiality and …
International Legal Practice Involving England And New York Following Adoption Of The United Kingdom Legal Services Act Of 2007, Sydney M. Cone Iii.
International Legal Practice Involving England And New York Following Adoption Of The United Kingdom Legal Services Act Of 2007, Sydney M. Cone Iii.
Articles & Chapters
This article deals with the regulation of legal services in England and New York in the context of, first, multidisciplinary practice ("MDP")1 and, second, permitted investment in legal practice. The article summarizes both the background of and potential differences between the regulations in those two jurisdictions, and comments on the possible reconciliation of those differences. Because, chronologically, New York was the first of the two jurisdictions under consideration to adopt rules on MDP, the New York rules will be considered first, and the more recent statute, known as the United Kingdom Legal Services Act 2007 2(hereinafter "U.K. Act"), will then …
Eliminating Political Maneuvering: A Light In The Tunnel For The Government Attorney-Client Privilege, Patricia E. Salkin, Allyson Phillips
Eliminating Political Maneuvering: A Light In The Tunnel For The Government Attorney-Client Privilege, Patricia E. Salkin, Allyson Phillips
Scholarly Works
The long recognized common-law privilege afforded to certain conversations between attorneys and their clients has been the subject of troubling opinions when the lawyer and client are high ranking government officials. In a series of opinions from the 7th, 8th and D.C. Circuit Courts of Appeals, the courts refused to recognize the existence of the attorney-client privilege for the government actors under the circumstances surrounding the cases. However, recent opinions from the 2nd Circuit state that these other courts were simply wrong, setting the stage perhaps, for the U.S. Supreme Court to resolve the issue. Whether this privilege is equally …
The Ethics Of Copyrighting Ethics Rules, Michael S. Ariens
The Ethics Of Copyrighting Ethics Rules, Michael S. Ariens
Faculty Articles
The American Bar Association’s (“ABA”) practice of requiring students to purchase the Model Rules of Professional Conduct is exploitative and unethical. The ABA uses its role in training lawyers to create a situation which all but requires law students and bar applicants to purchase the organization’s own Model Rules. The fact that the Model Rules constitute a substantial revenue stream for the ABA is due less to lawyers’ desire to brush up on Model Rules of Professional Conduct, which are not laws, than to the ABA's direct role in approving law schools and its indirect role in licensing lawyers.
Law …
The Ethical Obligation Of Transactional Lawyer To Act As Gatekeepers, Rutheford B. Campbell Jr., Eugene R. Gaetke
The Ethical Obligation Of Transactional Lawyer To Act As Gatekeepers, Rutheford B. Campbell Jr., Eugene R. Gaetke
Law Faculty Scholarly Articles
Recent examples of managerial misconduct at major corporations have called into question the adequacy of the gatekeeper role provided by transactional lawyers representing corporations. That role is governed by Model Rule 1.13(b), which obligates the lawyer for a corporation to take remedial action if the lawyer knows that corporate managers are engaged in actions that amount to a "violation of a legal obligation" to the corporation or that are unlawful and likely to result in substantial injury to the corporation. In addition, Model Rule 1.2(d) forbids a lawyer from lending assistance to any action by corporate managers "that the lawyer …
Litigators’ Ethics, Michael E. Tigar
Renewed Introspection And The Legal Profession, Eugene R. Gaetke
Renewed Introspection And The Legal Profession, Eugene R. Gaetke
Law Faculty Scholarly Articles
As the twentieth century draws to a close, the legal profession again immersed in a process of self-assessment, reflection, and reform. Operating on several fronts, various constituent elements of the bar have recently completed or have underway significant projects relating to the law of lawyering.
Two efforts stand out in particular. For more than a decade, the American Law Institute has labored in the production of a new Restatement of the Law Governing Lawyers, and the organization stands now on the brink of that monumental work's publication. Equally significant, the American Bar Association has again undertaken a comprehensive review of …
Parts And Wholes: The Integrity Of The Model Rules, Charles W. Wolfram
Parts And Wholes: The Integrity Of The Model Rules, Charles W. Wolfram
Cornell Law Faculty Publications
As important as is each of its parts, the 1983 Model Rules of Professional Conduct was, of course, meant to function as a whole. At the very least, the parts were presumably intended to work well with one another, sketching a regulatory apparatus that would guide both lawyers subject to it and courts and regulators administering it in a coherent and consistent manner. To a large extent the Model Rules made significant headway in this respect, continuing the movement toward more explicit and articulated regulation of the profession begun by their predecessor, the Model Code of Professional Responsibility.
Yet, …
Kentucky's New Rules Of Professional Conduct For Lawyers, Eugene R. Gaetke
Kentucky's New Rules Of Professional Conduct For Lawyers, Eugene R. Gaetke
Law Faculty Scholarly Articles
On July 12, 1989, the Kentucky Supreme Court adopted its own version of the American Bar Association's 1983 Model Rules of Professional Conduct as the body of disciplinary law applicable to lawyers practicing in the state. These new rules constitute a major improvement in the state's law of legal ethics. Their adoption should be considered a victory for Kentucky lawyers and, more importantly, a victory for the people of the state, the ultimate beneficiaries of the regulation of the legal profession.
As with most victories, the adoption of the new rules was not unequivocally positive. Kentucky's version of the Model …
Why Kentucky Should Adopt The Aba's Model Rules Of Professional Conduct, Eugene R. Gaetke
Why Kentucky Should Adopt The Aba's Model Rules Of Professional Conduct, Eugene R. Gaetke
Law Faculty Scholarly Articles
In 1983, after six years of drafting and lively debate, the American Bar Association adopted the Model Rules of Professional Conduct as its most recent statement of the ethical norms of the legal profession. Shortly thereafter the ABA forwarded the rules to the states for consideration and possible adoption as binding ethical principles. As of this writing, a number of states have adopted the Model Rules, in full or in substantial form, and several more have proposals for such adoption pending before their supreme courts
The Kentucky Supreme Court presently awaits the state bar association's recommendation regarding the Model Rules' …
A Uniform Rule Governing The Admission And Practice Of Attorneys Before United States District Courts, Michael S. Ariens
A Uniform Rule Governing The Admission And Practice Of Attorneys Before United States District Courts, Michael S. Ariens
Faculty Articles
The increase in the interstate and international practice of law necessitates a review of the rules governing the admission of attorneys to practice before federal district courts. By virtue of the sweep of their jurisdictional net, federal district courts are likely to be the fora for litigating most interstate or international disputes. The present rules, based upon the antiquated notion that lawyers only rarely practice law in federal district court, and then only in the federal district court located in the state in which they practice, do not address this change in the practice of law.
For these reasons, a …
American Bar Association Meeting Prayer Breakfast, Lewis F. Powell Jr.
American Bar Association Meeting Prayer Breakfast, Lewis F. Powell Jr.
Powell Speeches
No abstract provided.
Organized Bar: Self-Serving Or Serving The Public?, Thomas Ehrlich
Organized Bar: Self-Serving Or Serving The Public?, Thomas Ehrlich
Articles by Maurer Faculty
Under this provocative title the Senate Subcommittee on Representation of Citizen Interests conducted a hearing at the American Bar Association midyear meeting in Houston on Februarv 3, 1974. John V. Tunnev, Democrat of California, presided, along with Charles McC. Mathias, Republican of Maryland. Appearing as witnesses were:
Chesterfield Smith, president of the American Bar Association:
Stuart L. Kadison of Los Angeles, chairman of the Association's Committee on Delivery of Legal Services;
Christopher Edley of New York City, chairman of the Association's Consortium on Legal Services;
John F. Sutton, professor of law at the University of Texas, reporter for the committee …
Ethical Standards Of The Bar, Lewis F. Powell Jr.
Ethical Standards Of The Bar, Lewis F. Powell Jr.
Powell Speeches
No abstract provided.
The Proposed Code Of Legal Ethics For The American Bar Association, Henry M. Bates
The Proposed Code Of Legal Ethics For The American Bar Association, Henry M. Bates
Articles
The effort of the American Bar Association to frame and adopt a code of legal ethics is deserving of more attention from American lawyers than it is receiving. The adoption of such a code has been under consideration for several years. In 1905 the Association at its annual meeting instructed its committee to report at the meeting to be held in the next year upon "the advisability and practicability" of the adoption of such a code. In pursuance of these instructions the committee reported that in its judgment the adoption of such a code was not only advisable, but highly …