| Representing Disabled Clients |
| by Gina Hendryx, OBA Ethics Counsel |
| The adopted changes to the Oklahoma Rules of Professional Conduct include expanded options for the lawyer representing a client with diminished capacity or under a disability. Rule
1.14 now includes lesser restrictive alternatives to seeking a guardianship when the client lacks the capacity to assist in the lawyer-client relationship. |
| Dim the Lights: Issues in Winding Down a Law Practice |
| by Gina Hendryx, OBA Ethics Counsel |
| This is the third and final installment highlighting changes coming to the Oklahoma Rules of Professional Conduct. On Jan.1, 2008, amendments to the Oklahoma Rules of Professional Conduct as approved by the Oklahoma Supreme Court will become effective. |
| ORPC Changes at a Glance (Part 3) |
| by Gina Hendryx, OBA Ethics Counsel |
| This is the third and final installment highlighting changes coming to the Oklahoma Rules of Professional Conduct. On Jan.1, 2008, amendments to the Oklahoma Rules of Professional Conduct as approved by the Oklahoma Supreme Court will become effective. |
| Changes at a Glance (Part 2) |
| by Gina Hendryx, OBA Ethics Counsel |
| In the August edition of the Oklahoma Bar Journal, several of the modifications to the Oklahoma Rules of Professional Conduct were highlighted. Beginning Jan.1, 2008, amendments to the Oklahoma Rules of Professional Conduct as approved by the Oklahoma Supreme Court will become effective. These changes were prompted by extensive updates to the American Bar Association’s Model Rules of Professional Conduct. |
| ORPC
Changes at a Glance |
| by
Gina Hendryx, OBA Ethics Counsel |
| Amendments to the Oklahoma
Rules of Professional Conduct as approved by the Oklahoma Supreme
Court will become effective Jan. 1, 2008. These changes were prompted
by extensive updates to the ABA’s Model Rules of Professional
Conduct. The current Oklahoma rules are based substantially on
the ABA Model Rules and the adopted amendments reflect these updates
as well as current Oklahoma modifications. |
| Interest
on Unpaid Legal Fees |
| by
Gina Hendryx, OBA Ethics Counsel |
| My client owes me a
lot of money for legal services and advanced expenses. May I charge
the client interest on the unpaid balance? |
| The
Basics of Fee Agreements |
| by
Gina Hendryx, OBA Ethics Counsel |
| The written fee agreement
is the first and most practical opportunity to define not only
what the cost of the legal representation will be but also to discern
what services the lawyer will provide and what is expected from
the client. Oklahoma Rule of Professional Conduct (ORPC) 1.5 governs
fees and fee agreements. |
| Instilling
Professionalism from the Start |
| by
Gina Hendryx, OBA Ethics Counsel |
| Over the past few years, “professionalism” has
been a topic of much discussion and debate among attorneys. Many
have attempted to define and diffuse the causes for the steady
decline in the esteem in which lawyers are held by the public.
Common perceptions of legal ethics are equally contemptuous. |
| New
OBA Panel Issues First Ethics Opinion |
| by
Gina Hendryx, OBA Ethics Counsel |
| The OBA Board of Governors
is nearing completion of its review of recommended changes to the
Oklahoma Rules of Professional Conduct. This project was prompted
by extensive updates to the ABA’s Model Rules of Professional
Conduct. |
| ORPC
Review Nears Completion |
| by
Gina Hendryx, OBA Ethics Counsel |
| The OBA Board of Governors
is nearing completion of its review of recommended changes to the
Oklahoma Rules of Professional Conduct. This project was prompted
by extensive updates to the ABA’s Model Rules of Professional
Conduct. |
Internet
Advertising
Does Your Web Site Comply with the Rules? |
| by
Gina Hendryx, OBA Ethics Counsel |
| In the constant endeavor
to get and keep clients, lawyers are continuously exploring novel
means of advertising and revisiting proven methods of the past.
Television has always been one of the most powerful media for getting
information to the public. However, the costs are prohibitive for
most practitioners. |
| Ethics Rules Undergoing Changes |
| by Gina Hendryx, OBA Ethics Counsel |
| The Rules of Professional Conduct Committee began review of the Oklahoma Rules of Professional Conduct in February 2003. Oklahoma’s present rules were adopted in 1988 replacing the previously controlling disciplinary rules. |
| Money and Ethics: Trust Accounts, Expenses, Loans, Gifts, Fee Divisions and Liens |
| by Gina Hendryx, OBA Ethics Counsel |
| A lawyer who receives money or other property from a client or third party has a fiduciary duty to protect, account for and notify upon receipt of the property. Funds should be placed in a trust account separate and apart from the lawyer’s operating account or private account. |
| Fee Agreements with Clients |
| by Gina Hendryx, OBA Ethics Counsel |
| My client owes me a lot of money for legal services and advanced expenses. May I charge the client interest on the unpaid balance? |
| Communication Obligations to Clients |
| by Gina Hendryx, OBA Ethics Counsel |
| Communicate with your clients! It is an adage that is stressed at every legal practice seminar and risk management conference. |
| Fee Splits Between Lawyers |
| by Gina Hendryx, OBA Ethics Counsel |
| Fee division among lawyers most commonly occurs when one lawyer refers a case to another lawyer. Other scenarios may include when a client’s original attorney withdraws and is replaced by a successor, or a lawyer withdraws or retires from a firm. |
| Opinion Sets Parameters for Award, Settlement Advertising |
| by Gina Hendryx, OBA Ethics Counsel |
| The Legal Ethics Committee has prepared and the OBA Board of Governors has approved Legal Ethics Advisory Opinion No. 320 pertaining to the advertising of specific amounts obtained by jury verdicts or settlement negotiations. |
| Legislative Enactment Requires Out-of-State Attorneys to Register with OBA |
| by Gina Hendryx, OBA Ethics Counsel |
| Beginning Nov. 1, out of state attorneys must first register with the Oklahoma Bar Association before filing a motion for admission with an Oklahoma tribunal. |
| Providing Financial Assistance to a Client: How Far is too Far? |
| by Gina Hendryx, OBA Ethics Counsel |
| It is not uncommon during the course of litigation for a client, especially one with a pending injury claim, to ask for financial assistance from his or her attorney. The request may be for an “advance,” “loan” or "guarantee.” |
| New Program Creates Additional Options to Attorney Discipline |
| by Gina Hendryx, OBA Ethics Counsel |
| Twelve years ago, the American Bar Association's McKay Commission's study of lawyer regulation found there was a major need to look beyond prosecution alone to reach out to those lawyers who were having problems in their dealings with clients. More creative solutions were advocated to protect the public and to assist those lawyers. |
| Can I Communicate with Another Lawyer’s Client? Compliance with Rule 4.2 |
| by Gina Hendryx, OBA Ethics Counsel |
| Oklahoma Rules of Professional Conduct 4.2 (O.R.P.C. 4.2) prohibits a lawyer from communicating about the subject of the representation with a person the lawyer knows to be represented by another lawyer in the matter, unless the lawyer has the consent of the other lawyer or is authorized by law to do so. |
| Retaining Liens: When Should I Use One? |
| by Gina Hendryx, OBA Ethics Counsel |
| "My client hasn't paid me in months, I can't afford to continue working on the file without compensation, so the court has approved my Motion to Withdraw. The client wants to pick up the file with all of my 'free' legal work included..." |
| To Trash or not to Trash? |
| by Gina Hendryx, OBA Ethics Counsel |
| (oringinally published in the Oklahoma Bar Journal January 17, 2004 - Vol. 75; No. 2) |
| Out with the old and in with the new….a mantra for New Year's revelers, but probably not the sagest of advice for determining when and how to discard those closed client files. |
