Douglas Fox, Thomas Wilkinson and Deborah Winokur are presenting a live audio CLE course for the ABA titled “Updates on Recent American Bar Association Formal Ethics Opinions” through West LegalEdcenter’s partner, Celesq.
The ABA’s Standing Committee on Ethics and Professional Responsibility has issued recent formal guidance that is important to all practitioners. In June of 2019, the ABA issued Formal Opinion 487 concerning the division of fees in contingency fee cases where successor counsel in a case replaces prior counsel. Then, in April 2020, the ABA issued Formal Opinion 491 concerning a lawyers' duties regarding clients' criminal behavior in non-litigation matters. Finally, the ABA issued Formal Opinion 492 in June 2020 regarding a lawyer’s obligations to prospective clients. This trio of recent ABA ethics opinions provides significant professional guidance to both transactional and litigation practitioners.