Can California Associate Attorneys Be Disciplined For Their Boss’s Misconduct?
2/27/19
By: Gregory Fayard The answer to this question is yes, in certain circumstances. In November 2018, after 29 years, California enacted new rules of professional conduct for lawyers. The new rules have some major changes from the old rules. One of the biggest changes applies to associate attorneys who are just doing what their boss-lawyer…
What Are The Ethical Rules For Legal Blogs In California?
2/1/19
By: Greg Fayard If you are a California lawyer and are thinking about starting a blog, keep these points in mind: Blogging by an attorney may be a communication subject to the requirements and restrictions of the Rules of Professional Conduct and the State Bar Act relating to lawyer advertising if the blog expresses the…
California Court Clarifies Grounds for Law Firm Disqualification
1/30/19
By: Brett Safford In O’Gara Coach Company, LLC v. Joseph Ra, 2019 Cal.App. Lexis 12, the California Court of Appeal clarified the grounds on which a law firm can be disqualified. The Court reversed the decision of the trial court and disqualified Richie Litigation PC from representing Joseph Ra, a former executive of O’Gara Coach…
New Task Force Aims to Reform California’s Technological Ethical Rules
1/15/19
By: Paige Pembrook On December 5, 2018, the California State Bar Task Force on Access Through Innovation in Legal Services held its first meeting and started a long process to modernize ethical rules that currently inhibit lawyers from fully using innovative technologies and services from non-lawyer businesses. Under the Current Rules of Professional Conduct for…
As of 1/1/19 California Lawyers & Clients Going To Mediation Have To Sign This
12/19/18
By: Greg Fayard Come January 1, 2019, California lawyers who participate in mediations will need to provide written disclosures to their clients explaining mediation confidentiality. Further, California lawyers must get written acknowledgment from clients that they understand mediation confidentiality before participating in mediation. This requirement does not apply to class actions, however. The new law…
Yelp Can’t Be Ordered to Remove Defamatory Reviews by A California Lawyer’s Unhappy Former Clients
12/3/18
By: Frank Olah On July 2, 2018, in Hassell v. Bird (2018) 5 Cal.5th 522, the California Supreme Court held that Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996 prohibits courts from ordering Yelp to remove defamatory consumer reviews posted by an attorney’s former client. Section 230 states that “[n]o provider or user of…
Is “But-For” Causation In California Legal Malpractice Cases In Jeopardy?
9/18/18
By: Gretchen Carner & Brett Safford California attorneys sued for fraud and intentional torts, as opposed to negligent legal malpractice, may be subjected to a different causation standard after the California Court of Appeal’s recent opinion in Knutson v. Foster (2018) 25 Cal.App.5th 1075. The opinion has caused somewhat of a stir. “But-for” causation and…
9/13/18
By: Greg Fayard The California Supreme Court has weighed in on the vital importance of conflict of interest waivers. A flawed one could deprive attorneys of their fees. On August 30, 2018, the Supreme Court analyzed the validity of a conflict of interest waiver in a law firm’s retainer agreement for a high stakes case.…
8/24/18
By: Paige Pembrook The newly revised California Rules of Professional Conduct for attorneys, set to take effect November 1, 2018, include a tougher approach to discrimination, harassment, and retaliation in legal practice that exposes attorneys to State Bar discipline even where there has been no prior court determination of any wrongful conduct. The new rule…
In California Lawyer-Client Sex Will Soon Be A No-No
5/14/18
By: Greg Fayard In California, lawyers can have consensual sex with their clients as long as it is not based on coercion or in exchange for legal services. That will change this Fall. On May 10, 2018, the California Supreme Court approved comprehensive changes to the lawyer Rules of Professional Conduct—the first major change in…