New 2018 Louisiana Legal Ethics Book
More than 2,900 complaints are filed against Louisiana lawyers each year. Many of these complaints are caused by simple mistakes and innocent misunderstandings about what the rules of conduct require. If you …
SCOTUS Reverses Louisiana Conviction for Defense Lawyer’s Concession of Guilt Over Client’s “Vociferous” Objection
On May 14, 2018, the United States Supreme Court reversed a Louisiana defendant’s capital murder conviction after his defense lawyer argued to the jury during the guilt phase of trial …
April 2018 Discipline
These lawyers were the subject of Louisiana Supreme Court disciplinary orders or Louisiana Attorney Disciplinary Board recommendations that were made public during the month of April 2018. Louisiana Supreme Court …
New ABA Opinion Gets it Wrong on a Lawyer’s Duty to Admit Malpractice
Recognizing that “[e]ven the best lawyers may err,” the ABA Standing Committee on Ethics and Professional Responsibility has issued a formal opinion addressing when a lawyer must inform a client …
Yet Another Ethics Opinion Dings Avvo Advisor Lawyer Referrals
In April 2018, the Indiana Supreme Court Disciplinary Commission issued an advisory opinion finding that Avvo Advisor’s lawyer-referral service and its “marketing fee” for that service violates “several Indiana ethics …
What Practice Area Has the Most Legal Malpractice Claims?
According to a recent report by legal-malpractice insurer CNA, the answer is: family law. See CNA, Professional Counsel (April 2018). According to this insurer, “claim frequency in the family law area …
Fifth Circuit Reverses Half-Billion-Dollar Verdict for Lawyer Misconduct
On April 25, 2018, the United States Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals reversed a half-billion-dollar judgment against DePuy Orthopaedics in a metal-on-metal artificial-hip case due to the “fraud, misrepresentation or …
March 2018 Discipline
These lawyers were the subject of Louisiana Supreme Court disciplinary orders or Louisiana Attorney Disciplinary Board recommendations that were made public during the month of March 2018. Louisiana Supreme Court …
New Advisory Opinion Prohibits Use of Undisclosed “Web Bugs”
A “web bug” or “tracking bug” is a tag that an email sender can include in a message that will report back to the sender about the recipient’s handling of …
Lawyer Suspended for Six Months for Not Paying Bills
Can a lawyer’s failure to pay business-related debts be sanctionable in the lawyer disciplinary system? Yes, according to a March 14, 2018, opinion by the Supreme Court of South Carolina. See In …
Judge Sanctioned for Refusing to Perform Same-Sex Marriage Ceremonies
The Supreme Court of Oregon has sanctioned a judge who “inappropriately screened . . . wedding applicants to ensure that they were not same-sex applicants, because [respondent] refused to marry same-sex …