Some time ago, I wrote a bit about how existing ethics rules make attempting to use Kickstarter to launch a law firm not a viable option. The primary problem with using crowdsourcing to raise funds to start a law practice is the prohibition in the ethics rules on nonlawyer ownership or investment in law firms. […]
Tag: Meta
Am pleased to report that I was given an opportunity by the fine folks with the ABA/BNA Lawyers’ Manual on Professional Conduct to expand on my thoughts about the problem with Tennessee Formal Ethics Opinion 2015-F-160. Even if you are not a subscriber to the publication, you can read the article at this link on the Lewis […]
So, the latest rage in Netflix binge-watching is the documentary “Making a Murderer.” If you haven’t been engaged in a digital detox program over the last month or so, then you are likely aware of its existence. My wife and I just finished it up last evening. If you haven’t watched it, you really […]
For my last post of 2015, some thoughts on a frequent source of trouble for lawyers in certain practice areas where efforts are often made to charge nonrefundable fees. In Tennessee, back in 2011, our rules were revised to specifically acknowledge the legitimacy of the concept of a nonrefundable fee but also to impose certain […]
Many moons ago at this point, I wrote a post here with some criticism about ABA Formal Ethics Opinion 471 and the various questions important to client file issues on which it punted. Back then I also wrote about how our effort in Tennessee to get an ethics rule adopted (it would have RPC 1.19 in […]
I have made reference in the past on this blog about the problems that can come from the fact that Tennessee is one of a very few states that still use the “preponderance of the evidence” standard in disciplinary proceedings against lawyers. Fewer than a dozen jurisdictions including Tennessee still use that standard. Around forty U.S. […]
A while back I wrote a piece about a relatively deep conversation I had about right and wrong and why lawyers do some really bad things with a SuperShuttle driver in Phoenix. If you missed it, you can read it here. But one of the things I didn’t say during that conversation was that there […]
So, in honor of this my 100th post to the blog, you’ll see that the site has been spruced up a bit with a new logo and look. While the blog may now be more aesthetically-pleasing, the quality of the content isn’t likely to change (for better or worse). You may recall a few months […]
Unfortunately, it does not appear to be up and online as of yet at The Memphis Bar‘s website, but the latest issue of The Memphis Lawyer is out, and I have a column in it. The column — The Revised RPC 7.3(b)(3): The Road to Constitutional Infirmity is Paved With Good Intentions — talks about a revision […]
I remain surprised that RPC 2.1 is so rarely discussed when it comes to ethics rules. It’s not really a scientific or fair way of justifying my point, but if you were to go search the website of the Tennessee Board of Professional Responsibility for “2.1,” it will inform you “There were no results found. […]