8 MC Flashcards
(7 cards)
Lawyer discovers that Client has used Lawyer’s services to prepare and distribute a private placement memorandum for a securities offering which contains materially misleading financial information. Which of the following is a correct statement?
Lawyer may withdraw from the representation of Client, but need not do so.
During the representation of Client, Lawyer discovers evidence that leads Lawyer to reasonably believe that Client is using Lawyer’s services to lay the foundation for a future tax fraud. Must Lawyer withdraw from the representation?
No, because Lawyer does not know that the representation will result in a violation of other law.
An attorney agreed to represent a plaintiff in a personal injury lawsuit, and the next day agreed to represent a defendant in litigation where the defendant faces vicarious liability. Only after the attorney has conducted some investigation of the case, and has obtained confidential information from each client, does the attorney discover that the plaintiff client is actually suing another of the attorney’s clients, under a theory of vicarious liability. The two clients are actually adverse parties in the same litigation. Must the attorney withdraw from representing both clients?
Yes, a lawyer shall withdraw from the representation of a client if the representation will result in violation of the rules of professional conduct.
A client hired an attorney to represent her in a litigation matter. At the end of the first day of trial, the client is unhappy with her lawyer’s performance in the courtroom and informs the attorney that she is firing him and will find another lawyer. The attorney wants to continue representing this client until the end of the trial. May the client discharge the attorney after a trial has begun?
Yes, a client has a right to discharge a lawyer at any time, with or without cause, subject to liability for payment for the lawyer’s services.
A client fired an attorney after the attorney had completed 80 percent of the work involved in the representation. The client refuses to pay any of the fees that were in the original agreement at the beginning of representation. The client also demands that the attorney turn over all papers and documents relating to the representation. Must the attorney immediately return the client’s documents regardless of the fees owed?
. No, because a lawyer may retain papers relating to the client to the extent permitted by law.
A client fired an attorney after two weeks of representation, long before the matter was complete. The client had prepaid a large refundable retainer, against which the attorney was to draw his fees as the representation went on. The client therefore has fully paid her fees up to that point to the attorney. The attorney is upset about the client discharging him without cause and believes it is unfair and wrongful. The attorney refuses to return the remainder of the fees and refuses to turn over any documents from the representation to the client. Is it proper for the attorney to take this course of action, if indeed the client had no good reason to discharge him?
No, it is improper for an attorney to retain either the unused funds or the documents.
A client, who happened to be a judge, hired an attorney to represent her in her divorce proceeding against her husband, who is guilty of marital infidelity. Their fee agreement stipulates that the attorney would bill the client every month for the work performed in the previous thirty days. After two months of representation, the attorney has sent the client two bills, and has received no payments. Is it proper for the attorney to seek to withdraw from the case based on unpaid fees?
Yes, because a lawyer may withdraw if the client fails substantially to fulfill an obligation to the lawyer regarding the lawyer’s services and has been given reasonable warning that the lawyer will withdraw unless the obligation is fulfilled.
