Legal Ethics

There is a surprising gap in the law and literature about conflicts of interest.  Lawyers frequently provide advice and render opinions, both formal and informal.  However, leading authorities generally do not address when these legal services create ...

Expert testimony is required in almost all professional malpractice cases.  But expert testimony is not offered in most lawyer discipline cases.  What explains this discrepancy?  Should experts testify more often in discipline cases? Experts may testify ...

This blog discusses selected issues in knowledge management in the field of legal ethics.  The main reason for choosing this topic is that the primary current objective of the Lawyers Board (LPRB) and the Office of Lawyers Professional Responsibility ...

When may a lawyer use information from a prior representation against the former client? Rule 1.9(c)(1), R. Prof. Conduct, provides that a lawyer may not, “use information relating to the representation to the disadvantage of the former client except ...

This blog is a slightly expanded version of an article first published in Minnesota Lawyer, November 17, 2017.  The expansion is based in part on documents filed in the Minnesota Supreme Court in 1989, relating to the petition to adopt Rule 8.4(g), ...