The Girardi Effect
By David C. Carr
A State Bar Court hearing judge filed her decision this week recommending the disbament of Thomas V. Girardi.
Category: Legal Ethics
Moving Up: But With Caution
Moving Up: But With Caution
An opportunity suddenly appears: You’re a solo practitioner or in a small firm. You have the chance to join a larger firm — where the prospects appear brighter — or a chance to join another firm that better fits your practice. Before you leap, however, consider the ethical constraints that could haunt you and your future firm.
When My Client’s Capacity is Diminished: What May I Do? What Must I Do?
By Edward McIntyre
Many jurisdictions adopted a version of ABA Model Rule 1.14 to give guidance when lawyers must confront obligations to a client with diminished decision-making capacity. Our Rules Revision Commission submitted a proposed version of rule 1.14 to the Supreme Court that attempted to reconcile the Model Rule’s approach with unique California obligations, including our obligations of confidentiality.[1] The Court did not adopt proposed rule 1.14. The need for guidance, however, about ethical obligations to clients with diminished capacity remains. The State Bar’s Committee on Professional Responsibility and Conduct (COPRAC) stepped forward with a recent formal opinion.[2]
Fundamental To California Rules Of Ethics Is Lawyer Guidance To Clients On The Legality Of Client Conduct
A Pending California State Bar Opinion Explains And Gives Guidance On Lawyer Ethical Duties
By Charles Berwanger
Lawyers are often put into the position of knowingly (or even unknowingly) receiving client direction to, for example, include in a contract an illegal provision. Too, lawyers are often directed to enforce such an illegal provision.
Efferin Deans and the Boundaries and Evolution of the Practice of Law
By Jessica Park and Andrew Servais
The California State Bar recently seized the client files of Efferin Deans, a man with a 25-year history of impersonating attorneys and two prior convictions of identity theft.[1] On Oct. 27, 2021, a criminal complaint was filed in Los Angeles County naming Efferin Deans and twenty-two aliases that Deans utilized to impersonate a lawyer and appear on the record as a licensed attorney for family law and personal injury cases from January 2019 to September 2021 (See People v. Deans, Los Angeles County Superior Court,Case No: BA499952).
