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Texas Ethics Opinion Allows Lawyers to Use Collection Agencies: Should You Use Them?
February 9, 2016A recent Texas ethics opinion addresses two issues concerning collection of unpaid fees from clients. In Opinion 652, the Professional Ethics Committee addresses whether a lawyer may use a collection agency to collect overdue fees, and whether nonpaying clients may be reported to a credit bureau. Prior opinions of the Read the full post
Texas Ethics Opinion 651: Email Links on Law Firm Websites
January 18, 2016The Professional Ethics Committee for the State Bar of Texas has issued an opinion regarding the confidentiality of emails sent by prospective clients. Opinion 651 is a critical opinion for lawyers and law firms which have websites. The opinion concludes that lawyers are not required to warn prospective clients who Read the full post
Using Law Firm Ethics Counsel to Avoid Claims
August 17, 2015A recent Association of Professional Responsibility Lawyers (APRL) conference in Chicago included a number of good loss prevention ideas from in-house law firm ethics lawyers. Among roles in which in-house counsel can be important: Exercising care in choosing clients. Vetting and guiding lateral hires. Assuring continuing relevant education of law Read the full post
Ethical and Liability Considerations for Lawyers Acting as Fiduciaries in Estate, Trust and Probate Contexts
July 10, 2015This article considers the implications of the existence of lawyers’ fiduciary obligations arising outside of the attorney client role. First, the article will consider the application of the Texas Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct, the rules of ethics, to situations in which an attorney has fiduciary duties that arise outside Read the full post