Drug Testing for Bar Applicants?
Yes, at least in Tennessee. On December 21, 2015, the Supreme Court of Tennessee amended its bar admissions rules to include this paragraph: (b) The Board or any individual member …
Settlement Reached in Lawyer Overtime Pay Suit
Is a contract lawyer who performs mindless document review entitled to overtime pay under the Fair Labor Standards Act? Maybe so, but a December 2015 settlement moots adjudication of the issue. …
Should Lawyering Skills Be Required for Admission to the Bar?
New York’s highest court is considering imposing such a requirement. On October 9, 2015, the court requested public comment on a recommendation from its Task Force on Experiential Learning and …
Ten-Year Projections for Lawyer Employment Remain Dim
As of 2014, 1.1 million lawyers were in the labor force. See Bureau of Labor Statistics, Labor Force Statistics from the Current Population Survey. On December 8, 2015, the United …
Do Judicial Elections Affect Judges’ Decision Making?
Interesting question. The Model Code of Judicial Conduct requires a judge to “perform all duties of judicial office fairly and impartially.” See ABA Model Code of Jud. Cond. Rule 2.2; see also La. …
Disbarment for Retaliating Against Clients for Bad On-Line Reviews
On December 1, 2015, the Indiana Supreme Court disbarred a lawyer for, among other egregious conduct, retaliating against clients for unfavorable Avvo reviews. See In the Matter of David J. Steele, …
November 2015 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 November 2015. Louisiana Supreme Court Satrica …
May a Personal-Injury Lawyer Charge an Extra Fee for Negotiating a Reduction of Third-Party Liens or Claims?
No, according to a recent ethics opinion from the Alabama Bar Association. See Ala. State Bar. Assoc., Ethics Op. RO-2015-01 (Oct. 2015). The “negotiation of a reduction of third party …
Florida Approves Prelitigation Santization of a Client’s Facebook Page
May a lawyer advise a client to “clean up” social media pages by removing photos, videos, and other information that are “directly related to the incident for which the lawyer is …
Is a Lawyer Ethically Responsible for Trust Account Theft Caused by Hacking?
No, if the lawyer has otherwise taken reasonable efforts to safeguard client and third-party funds in the lawyer’s trust account. See N.C. Bar Assoc. Formal Op. No. 6 (Oct. 23, 2015). …