By Edward McIntyre
Macbeth turned to Sara and Duncan “Pete Moore, a friend, and my go-to AI guru, asked if we could meet. Said it was urgent. I told him to come right over. Are you both free for a few minutes?”
Ethics for New Lawyers
Inadequate client communication is typically one of the top complaints to the State Bar every year. This is unfortunate because keeping clients informed of developments in the representation is one aspect of the practice of law we can actually control.
By Khodadad “Ko” Sharif
Incivility may hit a litigant’s pocketbook.
By Khodadad “Ko” Sharif
Does California Rules of Professional Conduct, Rule 1.15, entitled “Safekeeping Funds and Property of Clients and Other Persons,” govern government agencies that are holding funds for third parties in a civil forfeiture proceeding? More specifically, should cash received or held in civil forfeiture proceedings by the Office of the District Attorney be deposited in one or more identifiable bank accounts labeled “Trust Account?”
By Andrew Servias
In a lawsuit against a School District involving a sexual assault, a video potentially relevant to the litigation was not preserved by the defendant. As a result, the plaintiff sought terminating sanctions. The trial court granted evidentiary, issue, and monetary sanctions, but refused terminating sanctions relying on an exception in Code of Civil Procedure section 2023.030 (f)(1) which provides that:
Ethical Issues “On the Side” Employment Raises
By Charles Berwanger
The all-important Rules of Professional Conduct are intended to guide our lives as attorneys, and in some instances our personal lives, and with this new year it behooves all of us to re-familiarize ourselves with the Rules. The purposes of the Rules are to “protect the public, the courts, and the legal profession, protect the integrity of the legal system; and promote the administration of justice and confidence in the legal profession.” Rule 1.10. It continues that “the Rules of Professional Conduct are intended to establish the standards for lawyers for purposes of discipline….Therefore, failure to comply with an obligation or prohibition imposed by Rule is a basis for invoking the disciplinary process.”
By Charles Berwanger
A December 6, 2023 New York Times’ edition’s first page’s headline announced “Nations Losing Race to Control Dangers of A. I.” The article continues with an internal headline: “Losing The Race to Control A. I.’s Perils – Alarmed by the power of artificial intelligence, Europe, the United States and others are trying to respond – but the technology is evolving more rapidly than their policies.” The article explains that “‘no one, not even the creators of these systems, know what they will be able to do,’ said Matt Clifford, an adviser to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak of Britain, who presided over an A. I. Safety Summit last month with 28 countries. ‘The urgency comes from there being a real question of whether governments are equipped to deal with and mitigate the risks.’
By Charles Berwanger
Practice law long enough and it will happen to you. You’ll learn, after the fact, that a witness on whom you were counting lied at a deposition. With trial looming, what do you do?
By Anne Rudolph
Lana Lawyer has a plaintiff’s personal injury practice. She does not maintain an internet web site and does not otherwise engage in advertising. However, her e-mail address is published on the State Bar of California membership records website accessible to the public.
