Themis Essay 838

Question 1

Lawyers owe their clients

Answer 1

fiduciary duties.

Question 2

A fiduciary owes to the beneficiary

Answer 2

scrupulous good faith, candor, and care in the management of the beneficiary’s interests.

Question 3

A lawyer must take reasonable steps to

Answer 3

safeguard client property.

Question 4

Lawyers must maintain

Answer 4

client trust accounts and safety deposit boxes for the safekeeping of client property.

Question 5

A lawyer must not commingle

Answer 5

her property with that of a client.

Question 6

Client funds must be held in a

Answer 6

client trust account separate from a lawyer’s property.

Question 7

Violations of a lawyer’s duty to properly handle client property are a serious matter and among the most frequent grounds for lawyer discipline for the following reasons:

Answer 7

(i) such violations are easy to verify;
(ii) they present a significant opportunity for continued abuse of clients by the offending lawyer;
(iii) the rules governing property-handling are per se rules which require no intentional wrongdoing on the part of the lawyer; and
(iv) because the rules require no balancing of the competing duties.

Question 8

Lawyers are prohibited from making statements that are

Answer 8

fraudulent or remaining silent when the statement or silence would amount to fraud under applicable tort principles.

Question 9

A statement to a third party must be both

Answer 9

false and material for it to subject the lawyer to discipline.