Author Description

The book begins with a long look at what it means to be a "professional." Why are lawyers different from other people who work for a living? Chapter 1 contains cases and textual materials that raise these issues provocatively, ranging from portions of cases involving lawyer advertising, to materials on legal education and bar admission, to cases on the unauthorized practice of law. Chapter 2 stresses the duty of competence that all lawyers owe to clients, and examines in some depth the contours of civil liability for legal malpractice and the constitutional claim of ineffective assistance of counsel. Chapter 3 explores a lawyer’s duty of confidentiality. Chapter 4 examines several aspects of the creation, maintenance and termination of the client-lawyer relationship. Chapter 5 deals with fees. Chapter 6 deals with conflicts of interest. Chapter 7 focuses on special rules that apply to litigators. Chapter 8 covers advertising and solicitation. Finally, the course ends with a look at some key issues about the law and ethics of judging, including the hot current issue of judicial elections.