Professional Responsibility
Week 1
I. Professionalism:
3 Factors that define Professionalism
Character
Keeping your integrity intact regardless of various types of pressure, practicing civilly and courteously.
Competence
Serving clients with skill and confidence, serve our clients diligently and fairly and economically. Commanding the essential skills of the laws, drafting, counseling, advocacy, well informed of current affairs and dealing fairly with the clients and the court
Commitment
To the service of the client, our system of justice, legal profession and to the public good, taking an active interest in public affairs and in the community, particularly taking a role in the work of the organized bar and supporting, defending, and improving the justice system, and assuring access to competent justice systems (pro bono)
Disciplinary standards
Law of lawyering
Moral values, duties imposed on practitioner by the profession
Civil liability/ malpractice
Rules of Professional Conduct/ Model Rules- 2002, ABA House of Delegates. Guidelines for state bars to follow, over 40 states have adopted the model rules with some variations. We are responsible for all of the model rules, even if we don’t go over them in class.
Readings for today pages 1-30, however we don’t have to read them. Smith is going to go through them for us. First fifteen pages are about the history of our common law system. Model rules that we will be studying do not have any aspirational principles in them, all disciplinary rules, commentary is helpful in understanding the rule, but it is not mandatory.
EC- ethical considerations, aspirational rules
DC Disciplinary rules- if you violate these you might be subject to disciplinary actions
Who regulates the Bar?
Some states the S.C. other states the legislature, or the BAR association. Some states have agencies, and others have voluntary bar associations. Board of Bar Examiners-> give the background check and character and fitness check this is comprised of ex investigators, private and FBI, etc. Also administers the tests and applications, bar decisions can be appealed to the Florida S.C. Bar examiners have nothing to do with the lawyers after they had been submitted to the practice, then the Florida court system takes jurisdiction. Bar then in charge of continuing legal education, trust accounts, client security funds administered, student and pro bono rules. The burden always rest on the applicant to show that he should be admitted into the bar.
Federal Courts- one must be admitted by one state before they can be admitted to practice in a federal court, vary f
[6] Harm is “reasonably certain to occur” if it will be suffered imminently or if there is a present and substantial threat that a person will suffer such harm at a later date if the lawyer fails to take necessary action necessary to eliminate the threat. i.e if lawyer knows that a company is dumping toxic waste into the town well and if people drink it they will die, the lawyer must report this to the authorities.
[8] Paragraph B3 addresses the situation when the lawyer does not learn of the client’s crime or fraud until after it has been consummated. Although the client no longer has the option of preventing the disclosure, there will be situations in which the loss suffered by the affected person can be prevented, rectified, or mitigated. That is when the lawyer should “tell”
Rules 8.1-8.5 (of the Green Book)
8.1 An applicant for admission to the bar, or a lawyer in connection with a bar admission application or in connection with a disciplinary matter shall not:
Knowingly make a false statement of material fact
