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Legal Ethics and Professional Responsibility Commons™

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Seattle University Law Review

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Articles 271 - 278 of 278

Full-Text Articles in Legal Ethics and Professional Responsibility

Dependency And Delegation: The Ethics Of Marital Representation, Naomi Cahn, Robert Tuttle Jan 1998

Dependency And Delegation: The Ethics Of Marital Representation, Naomi Cahn, Robert Tuttle

Seattle University Law Review

The two hypotheticals for this symposium concern a lawyer who is asked to represent a married couple in which one spouse would like to cede decision-making authority to the other. As we have examined the lawyer's ethical responsibilities, we have identified two distinct, but conceptually related, issues of legal ethics. The first, a threshold question, deals with the nature of marital representation: May a lawyer simultaneously represent both husband and wife? And if so, how should the representation be structured? The second adds an additional layer of complexity: If a lawyer represents both husband and wife, may the lawyer accept …


In Re The Exxon Valdez: The Danger Of Deception In A Novel Mary Carter Agreement, Amy Edwards Wood Jan 1997

In Re The Exxon Valdez: The Danger Of Deception In A Novel Mary Carter Agreement, Amy Edwards Wood

Seattle University Law Review

This Note addresses the legality and ethics of the secret agreement between Exxon and the Seattle Seven by analogy to a similar type of collusive agreement called a "Mary Carter" agreement. Part I of this Note looks at the terms of the Exxon/Seattle Seven agreements. Part II examines Judge Holland's controversial decision with respect to the Exxon/Seattle Seven agreements. Part III describes the nature of a Mary Carter agreement and the factors used to determine whether such an agreement exists. Then Part IV argues that, like Mary Carter agreements, the Exxon/Seattle Seven agreements undercut the jury system, prolong litigation, contravene …


You Wanna Do What? Attorneys Organizing As Limited Liability Partnerships And Companies: An Economic Analysis, Mark Rosencrantz Jan 1996

You Wanna Do What? Attorneys Organizing As Limited Liability Partnerships And Companies: An Economic Analysis, Mark Rosencrantz

Seattle University Law Review

Although many states have embraced the concept of limited liability for attorneys, approval is not universal. Rhode Island and California statutorily ban attorneys from practicing in such forms. Further, even those states that have embraced the concept recognize concerns that, under a limited liability scheme, the quality of attorney work may suffer, and sufficient funds may not be available for potential plaintiffs. This Comment argues that attorneys should be allowed to limit their liability by using the LLP and LLC forms to provide relief from the upsurge of liability because traditional arguments against attorneys' use of such forms ignore the …


Bias In The Washington Courts: A Call For Reform, Melisa D. Evangelos Jan 1993

Bias In The Washington Courts: A Call For Reform, Melisa D. Evangelos

Seattle University Law Review

Because of the documented threat that racial and gender bias pose to the effective administration of justice in Washington, this Comment advocates amending the Washington Rules of Professional Conduct to explicitly make intentional gender and racial bias an act of attorney misconduct and to discipline any attorney who engages in such behavior. Section I of this Comment identifies and describes instances of attorney behavior that result in gender and racial bias and explains the impact of such bias on attorneys, clients, and the judicial system. Section II explores similar anti-bias rules proposed or in place in other states. Section III …


The First Amendment, Commercial Speech, And The Advertising Lawyer, Justice Vernon R. Pearson, Michael O'Neill Jan 1986

The First Amendment, Commercial Speech, And The Advertising Lawyer, Justice Vernon R. Pearson, Michael O'Neill

Seattle University Law Review

The Supreme Court, in a few cases scattered over several decades, has implied the existence of a public right to a free flow of information as one facet of the freedom of speech; yet the Court has refrained from specifically basing a decision on any such right. But with the recent line of commercial speech decisions, the concept-of a public right to a free flow of information has become firmly established and merits detailed examination. That right, and the rationale of the Court in its commercial speech cases, may have far ranging implications. This Article explores these implications in three …


Ethical Considerations For The Justice Department When It Switches Sides During Litigation, Clifford Freed Jan 1984

Ethical Considerations For The Justice Department When It Switches Sides During Litigation, Clifford Freed

Seattle University Law Review

This Comment briefly discusses the history of Washington v. Seattle School District No. 1, and then demonstrates the difficulties in applying the present ABA Code of Professional Responsibility to certain ethical questions that can arise when the government changes its allegiance in the midst of litigation. The ethical propriety of the Department of Justice's actions is examined, and alternatives are proposed for situations in which the United States, represented in court by the Justice Department, switches sides in the same case.


Attorney Fee Disgorgement As A Disciplinary Action, Lynn P. Barker Jan 1984

Attorney Fee Disgorgement As A Disciplinary Action, Lynn P. Barker

Seattle University Law Review

This Comment first explores reasons for the rare application of fee disgorgement as a disciplinary measure. It then examines the contexts under which courts deprive attorneys of their fees in both nondisciplinary and disciplinary proceedings. This Comment concludes that, in many cases, disgorgement of fees as a disciplinary action for attorney misconduct would most effectively protect the public, deter unethical conduct, and restore confidence in the legal profession.


Everybody's Doing It—But Who Should Be? Standing To Make A Disqualification Motion Based On An Attorney's Representation Of A Client With Interests Adverse To Those Of A Former Client, Andra Barmash Greene Jan 1983

Everybody's Doing It—But Who Should Be? Standing To Make A Disqualification Motion Based On An Attorney's Representation Of A Client With Interests Adverse To Those Of A Former Client, Andra Barmash Greene

Seattle University Law Review

This article examines the issue of standing for disqualification motions based on an attorney’s representation of a client with interest adverse to those of a former client of the attorney. The article focuses on the appropriateness of granting standing to nonclients to make disqualification motions, particularly when the former client has not objected to the attorney’s alleged conflict of interest. First, the article examines the Model Code of Professional Responsibility provisions implicated when an attorney is charged with a conflict of interest between present and former clients to discern what rights the Code wanted to safeguard. Second, this article considers …