Year: 2018

Categories : Legal Ethics

The Ethical Implications of Threatening Criminal, Administrative, or Disciplinary Charges

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By Richard Hendlin

This Ethics in Brief will review California Rules of Professional Conduct [CRPC] Rule 5-100 which makes it improper for a California lawyer to “threaten to present criminal, administrative, or disciplinary charges to obtain an advantage in a civil dispute.” (CRPC 5-100(A).) The term “administrative charges” means the filing or lodging of a complaint with federal, state, or local governmental entity which may order or recommend the loss or suspension of a license. (CRPC 5-100(B).) A “civil dispute” includes “an administrative proceeding of a quasi-civil nature pending before a federal, state, or local governmental entity,” including administrative hearings for professional licenses. (CRPC 5-100(C).) Read More

Categories : Business & Corporate Law Wisdom

Arbitration and Dysfunctional Drafting

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By Carl Ingwalson Jr.

“A cautionary note – we spend too much time trying to make sense out of arbitration agreements precisely because litigants spend too little time drafting them. Increasingly, we have been presented with incoherent hybrids and bizarre mutations of supposed agreements for judicial or contractual arbitration.” National Union Fire Ins. Co. v. Nationwide Ins. Co. (1999), 69 Cal. App 4th 709, 717. Read More

Categories : Technology

LawPay Security Series: Part I

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Courtesy of LawPay

Your path to a more secure law firm starts today! Our mission with this Security Series is to promote better data protection in law firms through simple, manageable steps. Throughout the year, we will deliver practical tips you can use to easily update security in your firm. With the increase of cyber-crime and the associated risk to your firm, securing your assets is more important than ever. Read More

Categories : Legal Ethics

Avoiding the Practice of Law Via the Internet: Sometimes Easier Said Than Done

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By Jennifer Gilman

I, like millions of others, have a Facebook account.  I’m responsible with it, as all attorneys should be, and always make sure it passes the “eyebrow test.”  That is, I review all messages before posting to be sure that if my boss, my parents, my rabbi, a judge, the State Bar, my frenemy, and my ex-boyfriend all read the post, none of them would raise an eyebrow. Read More

Categories : Wellness

If You Don’t Have It, You Don’t Get It

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By Rick Waite

Thirty-four verdicts in excess of $1,000,000. A $100,000,000 class-action settlement against the largest funeral operator in the country. Former President of the Dade County Bar Association (Miami, Florida). Former member of the Florida Bar Board of Governors. Disciplined. Fit. Adjunct professor at the University of Miami Law School. Ervin Gonzalez seemed to have it all. Until June 8, 2017, when he ended his life. Read More

Categories : Current Topics

The Closure of This IRS Program May Affect You if You Have Undisclosed Foreign Assets

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Do you have undisclosed foreign assets? If so, you’ll need to learn more about the IRS’ decision to terminate its Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program (OVDP), effective September 28, 2018. Attorney David Foate of Gresham|Savage outlined the eliminated OVDP and shared other available programs that can assist U.S. taxpayers who run afoul of their reporting obligations: Read More