• videocam Live Webinar with Live Q&A
  • calendar_month @ 1:00 p.m. ET./10:00 a.m. PT
  • card_travel Ethics and Specialty Credits
  • schedule 60 minutes

Legal Ethics Issues When an Attorney Changes Firms: Managing Client Communications and Files, Work Product, Conflicts

TBD

$197.00

This course is $0 with these passes:

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About the Course

Introduction

This CLE course will prepare law firms and practitioners for legal ethics issues that arise when an attorney leaves one firm for another firm. The panel will discuss critical topics such as client communications, work-product disputes, and conflicts facing the attorney and the new firm.

Description

An attorney's transition from one firm to another is fraught with ethical pitfalls for the attorney and the firms. Legal ethics rules present some challenges regarding the attorney's and the firm's obligations to clients, including notice to clients and business solicitation.

Disputes often arise between a departing attorney and a firm over whether clients will stay with the firm or go with the departing attorney. Both parties may also have opposing claims on client contact information, document templates, and other non-client work product.

An attorney changing firms must communicate some client information to the new firm for conflict review. The ABA's Standing Committee on Ethics issued Formal Opinion 09-455 to guide the timing and scope of disclosures and how the new firm may use the information received.

Listen as our authoritative panel guides you through the myriad legal ethics issues presented when an attorney leaves one firm for another firm and offers approaches to avoid ethical pitfalls during the transition process.

Credit Information

Date + Time

  • event

  • schedule

    1:00 p.m. ET./10:00 a.m. PT

I. Notice and communication

A. Notice by departing attorney to the firm

B. Notice by departing attorney to clients

C. Notice by the law firm to clients

D. Post-notice communications with clients

E. Attorney solicitation of clients

II. Property of firm vs. departing attorney

A. Client files

B. Attorney work-product

C. Client contact information

III. The obligation of departing attorney and new firm

A. Conflict-check obligation by the new firm

B. Disclosure of client information to a new firm

C. ABA Formal Opinion 09-455: Disclosure of Conflicts Information When Lawyers Move Between Firms

The panel will review these and other critical issues:

  • What notice should a departing attorney and law firm provide clients—and how and when should this notice be given?
  • What actions should a law firm avoid after giving clients notice that an attorney is leaving the firm?
  • What rules govern a departing attorney's solicitation of clients from the former firm?
  • Is a departing attorney permitted to retain client contact information from a mobile device provided and paid for by the former firm?
  • What must an attorney disclose to the new firm about former clients—and how may the new firm use this information?