Abstract The “appearance of impropriety” standard should be categorically applied to regulate all members of the legal profession. The standard is intended to prevent the public’s loss of confidence in the legal system by disciplining members of the profession who appear to act improperly even if they do not violate specific ethics rules. When applying…
Law Society of Australia issues guidance on crowdfunding
The Law Society of Australia has released a guidance document over the professional and ethical risks for lawyers when navigating issues around crowdfunding. The guidance noted the rise in the use of crowdfunding for litigation, and the questions this raises over discrediting the profession if used for revenue raising. However, the guide also highlighted the…
ABA releases ethical guidance for lawyers changing firms
On the 4th December 2019, the American Bar Association (ABA) Standing Committee on Ethics and Professional Responsibility issued guidance on the ethical responsibilities of lawyers who are changing firm. Formal Opinion 489 recognises a lawyer’s right to move firms, noting that the ethics rules do not allow non-competition clauses in partnership, member, shareholder or employment…
Ethics and in house lawyers
A survey of 400 in-house lawyers, carried out by law professors from Exeter University and University College London in collaboration with flexible legal services provider Lawyers on Demand, has revealed that a third of in-house lawyers are sometimes placed in difficult moral positions. The research found that: 32% were asked ‘to advise or assist on things that made…
ICLR 2019: Changing Nature of the Profession; Workshop C1: Equality and Diversity
The following content has been provided by the panel presenting on this topic during the afternoon on Day 2 of ICLR 2019. Synopsis The panel will focus on sexual harassment in the legal profession as a regulatory issue, and explore the regulatory issues that can arise in the use of non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) in sexual…
UK Competition and Markets Authority to research Scottish legal services market
The Competition and Markets Authority has issued the following press release regarding its impending research into certain aspects of the Scottish legal services market to support the Scottish Government’s response to the Roberton Review. The following release was published 17 June 2019. This work has been prompted by the Roberton Review, an Independent Review of…
Four steps legal regulators can take to embrace their data
Data has always been a foundational part of the practice of law. However, the convenience, accessibility, and speed of digital mediums is transforming the discipline from within. Law firms are stepping up the plate leveraging their internal data, as well as industry data to make their practice and delivery of services more efficient and effective….
Colorado Lawyer Self-Assessment Program yields analytical insights
Colorado Supreme Court Office of Attorney Regulation Counsel started developing its lawyer self-assessment program more than two years ago, immediately after a seminal workshop on proactive, risk-based regulation at the 41st ABA National Conference of Professional Responsibility in May 2015. The new resource is a leading facet of a larger shift toward proactive management-based regulation, which aims to…
Transparency lies at the heart of Consumer Satisfaction
In January, the Legal Services Board (LSB) of England & Wales released its Regulatory Performance: Transitional Assessment Review looking at the transitional assessment of each legal services regulatory body against the LSB’s regulatory performance standards. The report found that it had “sufficient assurance that the regulatory bodies have met the minimum required level of performance…
An Australian Study on Lawyer Vulnerability and Legal Misconduct
Vulnerability to Legal Misconduct: Qualitative Study of Regulatory Decisions Involving Problem Lawyers and Their Clients An emerging body of scholarship discusses ‘vulnerability’ as an antecedent of legal misconduct. One conceptualization of vulnerability indicates that an individual has greater susceptibility to risk of harm, and safeguards may protect against that risk of harm. This empirical study…