“13 Reasons Why Ethics Issues Are More Complicated Than Ever”

www.lewisthomason.com

Brian S. Faughnan901•577•6139

[email protected]

“13 Reasons Why Ethics Issues Are More

Complicated Than Ever”


FAUGHNAN ON ETHICSThoughts on legal ethics, professional responsibility, and other aspects of the law of lawyering

Today’sAgenda§ Somethingofamixtapeformat



Today’sAgenda§ And,ifyouhappentohaveaSpotify

§ Haveanactualplaylistforyouramusement:



Today’sagenda

§ 13differenttopics§ Withafocusonwaystheruleshavechanged;possiblyoutdatedrulesthatmayneedtochange;andtechnologyissues

§ And,we’llclosethingsoutwithonelawyer’sthoughtsonmentalhealth&wellnessofourprofession



Side1/Track1:WhentheLeveeBreaks

§ Thedamseemstohavebrokeninthemarketforlegalservices

§ NotjustAvvo andavarietyofothercompaniesoutthereofferingonlineplatformstoconsumersoflegalservices

§ ButotherfrontslikeAtriumandPWC




§ Throughout2017,theunfavorableethicsopinionshavecontinuedtocomeoutaboutAvvo LegalServices

§ Butlawyershaven’tstoppedparticipating

§ Somestateshavemovedtowardchangestofacilitate

§ Antitrustchallengesinplayaswell




§ TherulesthatmatterinTN?§ RPC7.2(c),RPC5.4,RPC1.8(f),andRPC7.6

§ Theyworktogethertopreventlawyersfrompartneringwithnonlawyers,sharingfeeswithnonlawyers,orpayingcompensationforreferrals




§ Buthere’sthething…shouldthey?§ OregonRegulatoryCommittee’slistof9findings

§ First8soundprettyuniversalinapplication,sowon’tTNhavetopursuethe9th oneaswell?




§ RPC1.8(f)and5.4(c)requirelawyerstoprotecttheirindependentprofessionaljudgment

§ Wouldn’tthatbeenoughalone?§ Or,whataboutthatandhavingtodisclosetoclientsanypaymentsyoumadetosomeonereferringworktoyou?



Side1/Track2:BaitandSwitch

§ 2017hasbeenamixedbagofayearwhenitcomestoissuesofattorneyadvertising

§ Utahradiopersonalitycaseinvolvinganethicsopinionbadonmultiplelevels

§ NYofferedanotherexampleofconflatingseminarsandsolicitations




§ EventheprogressofAPRL’sproposaltostreamlinetheruleshashadmixedresults

§ SlowtogaintractionwiththeABA§ ButVirginiaessentiallyadoptedmuchofitasitsownrules




§ Afewmaximscontinuetobeundeniablytrue§ Lawyersaretheonlycomplainants

§ Barregulatorsdon’tparticularlyenjoyadcases

§ Consumersdon’tgetworkedupaboutit

§ Therearepeoplewhostilldon’tknowtheycanbehelpedbyalawyer




§ Advertisingishowsomelearn§ Whydoesourprofessionneedanyrulebeyond:advertisingcannotbefalseormisleading?

§ Redirectenergiestoencouragecommunicationaboutwhatourprofessiondoesandhowtheworkofalawyercouldhelpthem



Side1/Track3:ACautionarySong

§ RPC5.3obligationsandhowtheycouldbeexpandedbyGarlandv.BPR(Tenn.2017)

§ BPRwentafterthelawyerunderother“direct”rulesforwhatreadslikeanRPC5.3problem

§ Publiccensure- drewadissentingopiniononwhichrulescharged




§ Garlandwasmainlyafamilylawattorney.1fulltimeand1part-timeemployee

§ Factswerethathereliedheavily ontheseemployeesforcommunicationswithclients;oneclient’scasereallywentofftherails

§ DisciplinedforviolationsofRPC1.3(diligence)andRPC1.4(communication)




§ Alsothetypicaladd-onRPC8.4(a)violation,butwithatroublingtwist–(“throughtheactsofanother”)

§ ButnotRPC5.3;Kirby,J.,dissenting§ “Rule5.3wastailor-madeforsituationssuchastheonepresentedinthiscase.”



Side 1/Track 3: A Cautionary Song

§ Kirby- “WehavenofindingsonwhatmeasuresMr.Garlandshouldhave hadinplacetosupervisehisstaff.”

§ Kirby- “Wehavenofindingsonwhatefforts…shouldhavemadetoreasonablyensurethathisstaff’sconductwasappropriate.”

§ Me– iftheBPRisallowedtodothis,thenRPC5.3isnighmeaningless



Side 1/Track 4: Boys Better

§ SomanyethicslessonscanbelearnedfromtherecentDavidBoies/HarveyWeinsteinsaga

§ Onelessonaboutadvancedconflictwaiverswillbediscussedlatertoday

§ Otherlessonsaboutnotspeakingpubliclyaboutclientsyoufiredwon’tbediscussedtodayatall…




§ Onelesson– somewhatrelevanttoourpriortopic– istheroleoflawyerswhendealingwithagentsusingdeceitfulpractices

§ www.BlackCube.com

§ Theexplicitaimoftheinvestigationswork–accordingtocontract– wastostoppublicationinTheNYT andelsewhereoftheabuseallegations




§ BlackCubecreatedfictionalcompaniesandfictionalwebsitesforthem

§ “AvatarOperators”– hiredtocreatefakeidentitiesonsocialmedia

§ Pretendedtobefreelancejournalists

§ BlackCubePIsunderfalseidentitiesmetwithandsecretly-recordedRoseMcGowan




§ Boies signed the contract for Black Cube’s work for Weinstein

§ ThepaymentstoBlackCubewentthroughBoies’lawfirm

§ Boies receivedprogressreportsandpassedthemalongtoWeinstein

§ RPC8.4(c),RPC4.1,&RPC4.4(a)aretherulesmostreadilyapplicable



Side 1/Track 5: Changes

§ March7,2017- TNbecamethe27th statetoadoptthis“dutyoftechnologicalcompetence”

§ RPC1.1cmt.[8]:“Tomaintaintherequisiteknowledgeandskill,alawyershouldkeepabreastofchangesinthelawanditspractice,includingthebenefitsandrisksassociatedwithrelevanttechnology...”

§ Ifyouusesomething,youneedtoknowhowitworks.




§ AdditionalEthics20/20changesofnote

§ UpdatetoRPC1.4cmt.[4]

§ Clientcommunications,includingtelephonecalls,Alawyerormemberofthelawyer’sstaffshouldbe promptlyrespondtoreturned oracknowledgedclientcommunications.




§ DefinitionchangeinRPC1.0asto“writing”

§ RPC1.18clarityonwhatkindsofcommunicationstrigger

§ RPC1.1- Clientconsentbeforebringingonlawyersoutsideoffirm

§ RPC5.3cmt.[4]focusesonwhenclientdirectstheselectionofaparticularserviceprovideroutsidethefirm




§ TensionbetweenRPC1.6and1.7nowaddressedforlateralmovesandmergers

§ RPC1.6(b)(6)– “todetectandresolveconflictsofinterestarisingfromthelawyer’schangeofemploymentorfromchangesincompositionorownershipofafirm”

§ RPC7.2workingwith“leadgenerators”




§ Jan.25,2017Rule19(Prohac vice)revision

§ ThosewhoresideinstatebutpermittedtopracticebyRule7,§5.01(g)

§ May31,2017– Rule7revision

§ Brieffurtherextensionof“transition”provisionsforcomityandin-houseregistration

§ Aug.30,2017- Rule9revision(Section32)



Side1/Track6:Tenuousness§ AnotherspecificEthics20/20revision

§ UpdatestoRPC1.6- new(d)andanew,expandedaccompanyingcomment

§ “(d)Alawyershallmakereasonableeffortstopreventtheinadvertentorunauthorizeddisclosureof,orunauthorizedaccessto,informationrelatingtorepresentationofaclient.”



Side1/Track6– Tenuousness§ “Theunauthorizedaccessto,ortheinadvertentorunauthorizeddisclosureof,informationrelatingtotherepresentationofaclientdoesnotconstituteaviolationofparagraph(d)ifthelawyerhasmadereasonableefforts topreventtheaccessordisclosure.”

§ Whatconstitutesa“reasonableeffort?”



Side1/Track6- Tenuousness

§ Factors(i.b.a.n.l.t)§ Thesensitivityoftheinformation§ Thelikelihoodofdisclosureifadditionalsafeguardsarenotemployed

§ Thecostofemployingadditionalsafeguards




§ Thedifficultyofimplementingsafeguards

§ Theextenttowhichsafeguardsadverselyaffectthelawyer’sabilitytorepresentclients§ E.g.– makingadeviceorimportantpieceofsoftwareexcessivelydifficulttouse



Side1/Track6- Tenuousness§ ABAFormalOp.477Rfurtherelaboratesontheinterplayofthesefactors

§ Somelawyerpunditshave(mis)readtorequireencryptionofemailexchanges

§ But,noquestionthatthispushestheneedlefurtherandrequireslawyerstobedeliberateaboutdecision-makingw/r/tencryption




§ Whentransmitting1.6info:§ [19]Musttakereasonableprecautionstopreventtheinfocomingintohandsofunintendedrecipients

§ Nospecialsecuritymeasuresifmethodaffordsreasonableexpectationofprivacy



Side1/Track6- Tenuousness§ Clientisstilltheboss

§ “AclientmayrequirethelawyertoimplementspecialsecuritymeasuresnotrequiredbythisRule”

§ “Ormaygiveinformedconsenttoforgosecuritymeasuresthatwouldotherwiseberequired”



Side 1/Track 6 - Tenuousness

§ WhathappensifTSAorCustomsofficialsdemandaccesstoyourphonewhengoingthroughsecurity?

§ NYCBarFormal.Op.2017-5§ Iknowapracticalsolutionforprotectingemail…butprotectingtextsorotherdigitaldata?



Side1/Track7:WhyCan’tWeBeFriends?

§ SomehowwhetherjudgescanbeFacebookfriendswithlawyersisstillanopenquestion

§ TheFloridaSupremeCourthasthatquestionbeforeitinanappealofadisqualificationruling

§ CaliforniaandMassachusettshaveissuedveryrestrictiveethicsopinions




§ Tome,thistopicshouldbeeasy

§ Judges(andlawyers)arehumanbeings

§ Humanbeingshavefriends

§ Thejudicialethicsrulesdon’tsayjudgescan’tbefriendswithlawyers

§ Ifcanhavefriendsinreallife,canhavefriendsonFB




§ StatusasaFacebookfriendshouldjustbeonefactorinevaluatingwhetherthereisacloserelationshipsufficienttorequirerecusal.

§ Real-worldinteractionslikelymoreimportant.

§ And,FBpresencetendstobenefitthepublicbecause“Friends”listisusuallypubliclyaccessible



Side2/Track8– InfiniteContent

§ Madesomethingofahabitoverthelastcoupleofyearsofwritingabout“bad”ethicsopinions

§ Tworeallynoteworthyopinionsthispastyearworthhighlighting

§ OnefromNebraskaandonefromRhodeIsland




§ RhodeIsland2017-2

§ Whetherthelawfirmmayrepresentthebuyerandtheseller,twocurrentclientsofthefirm,inthesaleofadivisionofseller’sbusinesstothebuyer.

§ RhodeIslanddoesnothavesomeuniqueversionofRPC1.7(b)




§ Yet,theopinionadvisesthattheconflictisnotconsentable becausethesamelawyercouldnot“reasonablybelieve”theycouldprovidecompetentanddiligentrepresentationtoeachofbuyerandseller

§ Alsoprovidesadiscussionofscreeningthatfailstodrawadistinctionbetweenconsensual&non-consensualscreens




§ Nebraska17-03

§ CanalawyeracceptBitcoinaspaymentfromaclient?

§ Providesa“yes,but”sortofanswer

§ Isahelpfulopinioninquiteafewways

§ But…intheendstillbad




§ Nebraska17-03

§ TreatsBitcoinaspropertymuchdifferentlythananyotherpropertyusedtopayafee

§ Missestheimportantconfidentialityconcern

§ Managestosay“yes”inawaythatnoonewhowouldacceptBitcoinwouldfindhelpful



Side2/Track9:DoIHavetoTalkYouIntoIt?§ TheproblemsofrelyingonadvancedwaiversofconflictsisanotherrichveinwecanminefromBoies/Weinstein

§ Reminder– Boies’s firmwasrepresentingTheNewYorkTimes indefendingalibelcaseatsametimehetookonassistingWeinsteinwithtryingtospikeTheNewYorkTimesstory

§ Boies’s justificationwasanadvancedwaiver



Side2/Track9:DoIHavetoTalkYouIntoIt?§ InTN,guidanceisinCmt.[22]toRPC1.7

§ Effectivenessguidedbyextenttowhichclient“reasonablyunderstandsthematerialrisksthatthewaiverentails”

§ Morecomprehensivetheexplanation,thegreaterthelikelihoodofnecessaryunderstanding

§ Generalandopen-endedusuallynoteffective



Side2/Track9:DoIHavetoTalkYouIntoIt?§ ButwhattheBoies/NYT situationreallyshowsisthatethicalenforceabilityisonlyhalfthedynamic

§ NYTfiredBoies and(becausetheybuyinkbythebarrel)rippedhimpublicly

§ “Weconsiderthisintolerableconduct,agravebetrayaloftrust,andabreachthebasicprofessionalstandardsthatalllawyersarerequiredtoobserve.”



Side2/Track10– IDidn’tSeeItComing

§ Afewwordsaboutthingsthatcanstilltripupevenexcellentlawyers

§ Therisktoprivilegeandconfidentialitypresentedbyclient’suseofemployer-ownedemailsystems

§ WeirdwrinklearoseincaseinvolvingemailssentbytheCEOofMarveltohispersonalattorney



Side2/Track10– IDidn’tSeeItComing

§ Conflictsinvolvingsubpoenastocurrentorformerclients

§ Somelawyerswanttopushbackontheideathatthispresentsanissue

§ NYCBarOp.2017-6providesverygoodexplanationoftheproblems

§ Atleastrunningtheconflictstoknowwhatyoumaybegettingintoisamust



Side2/Track11– ArtofAlmost

§ Only2TNEthicsOpinionsissuedin2017

§ Unfortunately,bothopinionsleavemuchtobedesiredintermsofcogentanalysis

§ Thereisanumbermissingbetweenthetwoopinions,sotherealsomustbeoneintheworksbutthathasgottenintoalimbostatus.




§ 2017-F-162:nicheopinionaboutwhatan“ombudsmanattorney”underthenewworkers’compensationframeworkcandoinproviding“limitedlegaladvice”toaproselitigant

§ Opinionexplainshowsuchlimitedlegaladvicedoesnotcreatea/crelationship

§ Unfortunately,offersaninterpretationofRPC1.2(c)thatisproblematiconprincipal




§ RPC1.2– ScopeoftheRepresentationandtheAllocationofAuthoritybetweentheLawyerandClient

§ “(c)Alawyermaylimitthescopeofaclient’srepresentationifthelimitationisreasonableunderthecircumstancesandtheclientgivesconsent,preferablyinwriting,afterconsultation.”

§ BPRusesthistosayombudsmanattorneycanavoidattorney-clientrelationshipbeingformed




§ 2017-F-164:addresseswhetheraproposedinterstatelawfirm(TN/Fla)canoperatewithatradenameandleasespacefromatitlecompany

§ Getsbase-levelquestionsrightbut,unfortunately,againoffersaless-than-idealanalysis.

§ Alsorolledoutinaweirdwaywithanunsigned,undatedcopy.




§ IgnorestheimpactofRPC8.5andthatyoucan’treallyanswerthequestionswithouttalkingaboutFlorida’sversionofthesamerelevantrules

§ MischaracterizeshowRPC5.7actuallyworksinTennessee.

§ Makesitsoundlikecertainthingshavetobedonemerelytobeabletoleasethespaceasopposedtomatteringforwhetherservicesprovidedbythetitlecompanywouldbetreatedasseparate/distinctfromlawfirm



Side2/Track12– Don’tDoMeLikeThat

§ Lastyear,ImadementionofABAModelRule8.4(g)

§ Nov.15,2017– TBA&BPRfiledajointpetitiontoaskTNSupremeCourttoadoptaversionofRPC8.4(g)

§ Nowoutforpubliccomment– March21,2018commentdeadline




§ “Itisprofessionalmisconductforalawyerto…(g)engageinconductthatthelawyerknowsorreasonablyshouldknowisharassmentordiscriminationonthebasisofrace,sex,religion,nationalorigin,ethnicity,disability,age,sexualorientation,genderidentity,maritalstatus,orsocioeconomicstatusinconductrelatedtothepracticeoflaw.”




§ “Thisparagraphdoesnotlimittheabilityofalawyertoaccept,decline,orwithdrawfromarepresentationinaccordancewithRPC1.16.”

§ “ThisparagraphdoesnotprecludelegitimateadviceoradvocacyconsistentwiththeseRules.”

§ AlsohighlightsadditionalFirstAmendmentprotectionsnotinABAComments.




§ “LegitimateadvocacyprotectedbySection(g)includesadvocacyinanyconductrelatedtothepracticeoflaw,includingcircumstanceswherealawyerisnotrepresentingaclientandoutsidetraditionalsettingswherealawyeractsasanadvocate,suchaslitigation.”

§ “...doesnotrestrictanyspeechorconductnotrelatedtothepracticeoflaw,includingspeechorconductprotectedbytheFirstAmendment.”



Side2/Track13– Anxiety

§ Significantmediaattentionanddevelopmentsin2017involvinglawyerwellnessissues

§ July15,2017NewYorkTimes articleabouthigh-profileSiliconValleylawyerwhodiedofadrugoverdosemanagingaconferencecallbeforedying

§ Veryrecentstoryofahigh-profileTexastriallawyercommittingsuicide




§ The2016ABAandBettyFordFoundationstudy

§ 21%oflawyersare“problemdrinkers”

§ 28%strugglewithdepression

§ 19%strugglewithanxiety

§ Only25%ofthosepolledevenrespondedtothesectionondrugs




§ Aug.2017– ReportoftheNationalTaskForceonLawyerWell-Beingreleased

§ Thereis,ofcourse,anethicscomponenttowell-being(RPC1.1,1.3,1.4)

§ Butalso,averyhumancomponent

§ “Allstakeholdersmusttakestepstominimizethestigmaofmentalhealthandsubstanceusedisordersbecausethestigmapreventslawyersfromseekinghelp.”



Thankyou

§ Bekindtoeachother.§ Reminder,youcansamplethatplaylistatmyblog

§ Ifyou’dliketheseslides,[email protected]

“13 Reasons Why Ethics Issues Are More Complicated Than Ever”

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