Ethical Virus

Ethical law

Legal ethics encompasses an ethical code governing the conduct of persons engaged in the practice of law and persons more generally in the legal sector.
Mr Yoosuf Nazeer who lives in Sri Lanka said that "Legal ethics" in the United States is generally understood to primarily apply to lawyers, while codes of professional responsibility also apply in a derivative sense (directly) to non-lawyers who work with lawyers, such as paralegals or private investigators.[irrelevant citation] In the United States, the practice of law is regulated by the governments of the individual states and territories. As a whole, federal law does not control legal ethics.

Each state or territory has a code of professional conduct dictating rules of ethics. These may be adopted by the respective state legislatures and/or judicial systems. The American Bar Association has promulgated the Model Rules of Professional Conduct which, while formally only a recommendation by a private body, have been influential in many jurisdictions. The Model Rules address many topics which are found in state ethics rules, including the client-lawyer relationship, duties of a lawyer as advocate in adversary proceedings, dealings with persons other than clients, law firms and associations, public service, advertising, and maintaining the integrity of the profession. Respect of client confidences, candor toward the tribunal, truthfulness in statements to others, and professional independence are some of the defining features of legal ethics.

Some U.S. states, including New York, require applicants seeking to become attorneys to have taken a course in professional responsibility during law school.

states have written their own rules from scratch. There is some debate over whether state ethical rules apply to federal prosecutors. The Department of Justice has held differing opinions through different administrations, with the Thornburgh Memo suggesting these rules do not apply, and the Reno Rules asserting that they do apply.

Lawyers who fail to comply with local rules of ethics may be subjected to discipline ranging from private (non-public) reprimand to disbarment.

India
In India, under the Advocates Act of 1961, the Bar Council of India is responsible for creating rules for registering advocates, regulation of legal ethics, and for administering disciplinary action.[2]

Australia

In New South Wales, reforms commencing from July 1 2015 brought a uniform regulatory system to the legal profession regarding billing arrangements, discipline procedures and complaints handling processing

U.K.
A solicitor's commitment to behaving ethically is at the heart of what it means to be a solicitor. The Law Society supports solicitors in recognising and handling difficult professional situations and making choices which can be substantiated by reference to the SRA Code of Conduct.

Ethics involves making a commitment to acting with integrity and honesty in accordance with widely recognised moral principles.
Ethics will guide a professional towards an appropriate way to behave in relation to moral dilemmas that arise in practice.
Ethics is based on the principles of serving the interests of consumers of legal services and of acting in the interests of the administration of justice, in which, in the event of a conflict, acting in the interests of the administration of justice prevails.

Support services
Ethics
A solicitor's commitment to behaving ethically is at the heart of what it means to be a solicitor. The Law Society supports solicitors in recognising and handling difficult professional situations and making choices which can be substantiated by reference to the SRA Code of Conduct.

Ethics involves making a commitment to acting with integrity and honesty in accordance with widely recognised moral principles.
Ethics will guide a professional towards an appropriate way to behave in relation to moral dilemmas that arise in practice.
Ethics is based on the principles of serving the interests of consumers of legal services and of acting in the interests of the administration of justice, in which, in the event of a conflict, acting in the interests of the administration of justice prevails.
SRA Code of Conduct: the principles
Making a commitment to acting ethically is intrinsically linked with meeting the standards and requirements set out in the SRA Code of Conduct. These standards stem from the 10 mandatory principles. The principles apply to all solicitors and underpin all aspects of practice. [Read more about the principles]

For advice on ethical issues, call the SRA professional ethics helpline on 0370 606 2577.

Ethical scenarios
Ethical scenarioThe Law Society is creating a suite of interactive ethical scenarios featuring Ethel, our ethical guru, who guides users though the ethical issues associated with dilemmas solicitors might face in practice.

After completing the scenarios, please tell us what you think by filling in the short feedback survey.

1. Conflicts of interest
A solicitor finds herself in a position of potential conflict. Can she represent two clients in the same matter?

There are lessons to be learned about identifying conflicts at an early stage, ensuring good communications with clients and taking steps to alleviate problems further down the line.

2. Confidentiality
A solicitor must consider his duties of confidentiality and disclosure in a complicated set of circumstances.

3. Speaking up as a junior lawyer
A junior solicitor finds herself in a difficult situation when she discovers potential misconduct by her training principal and supervisor. What exactly should she do next, bearing in mind that he is responsible for signing off her training contract?

4. Client pressure
A solicitor is put under pressure by a large commercial client to change the firm's usual terms of engagement. The situation becomes more complicated when the solicitor represents the client in a Competition and Markets Authority investigation for price fixing.

5. Change of plea in a criminal trial
In a criminal trial a solicitor is representing a client on two burglary charges, both of which involve preying on elderly people. The scenario explores the ethical dilemma caused by the client wishing to change his guilty plea. As with all of the scenarios, a range of factors causes the situation to become increasingly complicated.
99 per cent of survey participants believed the level of ethical behaviour required of a solicitor is something that sets them apart from the general public, and 83 per cent considered it sets them apart from other competitors in the legal market.
98 per cent noted that there is a place and a need for ethics in the current climate in which solicitors operate.
There should be greater emphasis placed on ethics during legal education and continuing competence training.
There is a role for firms in ensuring awareness of ethical responsibilities for solicitors working in their firms, and firms should foster cultures which promote good ethical decision making.
The Law Society could take a more proactive role in embedding an ethical culture within the profession, such as:
creating relevant online resources including webinars, interactive scenarios and Professional Development Centre courses
running events, debates and workshops on ethics.
The results of the project are already informing the Law Society's consideration of future work in this important area. Indeed, the launch of interactive ethical scenarios stems from the project's findings.

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