lawyer's duty to the public and the legal system Flashcards
true or false: a lawyer is required to work 50 hours per year of pro bono work
false; they cannot discipline you for not doing pro bono work, but they can shame you
what constitutes good cause for which you can decline appointment?
- if you would have to violate rules or law
- if it would be a unreasonable financial burden on you
- unable to represent client effectively (you hate them or not competent)
as part of a legal aid program, a plaintiff calls you and you know there’s a COI. can you rep them?
NO, but only if you KNEW of the conflict. Otherwise no duty to check for conflicts
can a lawyer serve on the board of a non profit legal org?
yes, no automatic lawyer-client relationship established, but you cant knowingly screw over a legal aid client to benefit your paying client
can you serve on the board of a law reform org if its interest is advertising to one of your paying clients?
yes, but if the reform will BENEFIT your existing client, you have to disclose that to the org
what is the requirement for publicly criticizing judge?
must have proper basis and the facts must be true, cannot be suspected facts
cna you imply that you can influence some government official like saying your aunt is the chief judge?
no, you cant do anything that implies you can exert undue influence
can you make political contributions
Not if your goal was to get something beneficial. Rule looks are what you are trying to get in exchange.
if you are trying to get an unpaid volunteer position, that’s fine
if a board member of a legal aid society is voting on an issue where he knows there’s a conflict of interest, is he permitted to vote on that matter?
Not if there is a COI or the decision would adversely affect the Org OR the lawyer’s clients
