PAR 104 PARALEGAL ETHICS NAME __________________________________________________________

EXAM #1 DATE: _____________

DIRECTIONS: + Use the general rule, unless otherwise indicated. + Don't over-analyze! Read the question carefully, but don't add your own stuff. + More than one answer may seem partly correct. Choose the "perfect" ethical response. + Bring a red or colored pen to next class for corrections. + You may use our class text and a dictionary (Black's, too) only. DO NOT COLLABORATE. _________________________________________________________________________________________________ MULTIPLE CHOICE: 1. Bob practices law in the State of Anxiety, the only state in the union that does not require attorneys to be members of any professional association. Anyone who passes the state's bar exam, can hang out a sign and practice law. Bob is just starting out, and can't afford the membership dues for the bar right now. a. Bob's conduct as an attorney will be governed by the American Bar Association ("ABA"), because Bob is an attorney practicing in the country of America. b. Bob's conduct as an attorney will NOT be governed by ANY rules other than the State and Federal laws that apply to ALL residents of the State of Anxiety. c. Because Bob does not belong to any professional association, his behavior is not governed by ANY laws or rules of ANY kind. d. Although Bob has settled in the State of Anxiety, he received his law degree from the University of Arizona. That means that the laws and rules that apply to Arizona attorneys will apply to Bob, even in Anxiety.

2. You are Bob's (from Question #1) paralegal. Because it is important to you to establish and maintain your professional integrity, you wish to align yourself with a code of ethical guidelines. a. Establish in your mind your own personal code of behavior. Write it down in order to strengthen your conviction. b. There's nothing you can do. Just be sure you always adhere to Federal and State criminal and civil laws, so you'll set a good example. follow. c. Talk to Bob about your concerns. Ask him to develop a set of ethical guidelines for you to

d. Look for a professional association of legal assistants in your town/county/state. If there aren't any, join NALA or NFPA. Most professional legal assistant associations have a code of ethics.

3. You have found out that, in the neighboring State of Bliss, the Bliss Bar Association ("BBA") is "integrated." This means: a. b. c. Lawyers must belong to the BBA in order to practice law in Bliss. Members of any race or ethnic background can join the BBA. To be a BBA member, lawyers must also join the American Bar Association.

d.

An attorney must be sponsored for, and elected to, membership in the BBA.

4.

Suzie's resume indicates that she is a Certified Legal Assistant. If true, this means: a. b. Suzie is a graduate of a paralegal training program approved by the ABA. Suzie has received a Certificate of Completion from her paralegal correspondence course. A former employer of Suzie's used this title to describe all paralegals who worked for the

firm.

c.

d. Suzie has successfully completed a 2-day exam administered by NALA, and has met the other requirements necessary to obtain and use the CLA designation.

5.

In a job interview, a potential employer asks if you are licensed. You: a. Respond with conviction, "Of course." Say, "Yes, I have a Class D Arizona Driver's License, three dog licenses, and a Notary Public

b. license."

c. Say, "Licensing of paralegals is not yet offered or required in any state." If you can, and it seems appropriate, provide a concise summary of the status of paralegal licensing in Arizona. d. You admit that you do not have a license, but that you intend to get one as soon as you settle into your new job.

6. You've moved to the State of Shock. You have accepted a job with a medium-sized, private law firm. At a legal assistant meeting one morning, you see a copy on the conference room table of a booklet entitled, "Ethical Rules & Guidelines for the Shock Paralegal Association." Though you haven't joined the Association yet, these guidelines look pretty strict. a. Get a copy of these guidelines immediately and memorize each and every paragraph as soon as you can. b. Snap out of it! These rules do not apply to you unless and until you are a member!

c. Don't panic. All ethical guidelines give new paralegals a grace period before they are required to join the local professional association. d. Forget about the whole thing! Ethical guidelines are for wimps.

7. Now that you're in Shock, you need to find out the laws and stuff out there that apply to you as a legal assistant. a. Identify every professional paralegal association in the State of Shock. Contact each and request a copy of their Rules & Guidelines, just to be sure you're in compliance. b. You're lucky enough to have found a job with the Office of the Shock Attorney General. As a State employee, you're confident that anything you're asked to do will be ethical and above-board. c. . Wait until you find out a bit about the ethics and expectations of your employer. These are, after all, the ethical standards to which you will want to conform. d. Check out the State and Federal law, civil and criminal, statutory and case law, that applies to the utilization of legal assistants in Shock. Don't worry too much about the rules and guidelines of any of the professional associations in Shock until you are a member of one.

8. You're employed by a small, general-practice, private law firm. None of the attorneys is available to meet with a client who's in town for the day to take care of several legal matters, so the job falls to you. The client comes straight from the airport to your office. First, he wants to make out a will, and provides you with all the necessary information. You make several suggestions about things to add, select an appropriate will form from your computer, and incorporate his information, along with your suggestions, into the form. The client reviews your draft document, and signs the will in front of the proper witnesses. You and the client then attend a real estate closing on a small business he's buying. It's a good thing you're there. The sale contracts contain several errors that need to be re-written. You make the necessary changes and the deal ultimately closes. You finally have time to tell the client about the $25,000 settlement offer you've received in his personal injury case. When the client asks you what you think of the offer, you tell him he must consult with one of the attorneys about anything more than the amount of the offer. Later, at dinner, you remember to mention an interesting stock tip you overheard from another client. Won't your boss be thrilled at all you've accomplished with this very important client? a. b. c. d. Well, at least your actions surrounding the will were ethical... Well, at least your actions surrounding the real estate deal were ethical... Well, at least your actions surrounding the personal injury settlement offer were ethical... Well, at least your actions surrounding the stock tip were ethical...

9. Given the facts provided in Question #8, what else might you have done when the client demanded you write him a will? a. Tell the client your office doesn't do wills, but refer him to someone who does.

b. Take down the client's information, tell him you'll transmit his request to your attorney, and after the client has gone, talk to and/or send a memo to the attorney providing the pertinent information, including your suggestions. c. d. Tell the client jokingly that he forgot to name you in his will. Nothing - you did everything ethically.

10. deal?

Given the facts provided in Question #8, what else might have you done about the real estate

a. Remember, some real estate professionals are allowed to perform some tasks that are normally reserved for attorneys. Find out if there is anyone else at the closing who is authorized to make the necessary changes. b. Stop the closing, and bring copies of all the documents back to your attorney so s/he can make the necessary revisions. c. Go ahead and have the client sign the contracts and other documents, as written. You can always go back and change them later. d. Nothing - you did everything ethically.

11 . Given the facts provided in Question #8, what else might have you done about the personal injury settlement offer? a. Go ahead and tell your client what you think about the offer, but be sure he realizes you are speaking "off the record."

b.

Stall for time by asking your client, "Well, what do you think about the offer?"

c. Don't tell your client about the settlement offer, even though you know your attorney won't be available to discuss it with him for at least two weeks. d. Nothing - you did everything ethically.

12.

Given the facts provided in Question #8, what else might you have done about the stock tip? These actions are only unethical if you are investing your own personal money into this Just be sure you tell your client he must promise to "forget" where he heard the tip.

a. deal, too. b.

c. Kept your mouth shut. Not only have you breached the confidentiality of the client from whom you heard the tip, but you are probably engaging in "insider trading", which is illegal for anyone to do. Ask Martha Stewart. d. Nothing - you did everything ethically.

13. It is essential that you disclose your status as a legal assistant/paralegal, i.e., non-lawyer, in all your dealings on behalf of your employer. a. Unless your employer wants to charge his client an attorney's hourly rate for your time.

b. Unless all the attorneys at your firm are otherwise occupied, and you are the only one left to stand in as an attorney. c. d. attorney. It is unethical for you to appear to be acting as an attorney, in any situation. Unless it is to your firm's strategic advantage for someone to believe that you're an

14. Your firm has been retained by the United States Attorney's Office to help with an overflow of administrative agency matters. Your firm will make its legal assistants available to represent indigent clients at federal agency hearings. You're excited about this opportunity. One of your firm's partners, though, is freaked out because the law in the State of Panic forbids such legal assistant representation in state agency hearings (but not in federal hearings). a. There's not much you can do here. This is something the partners will have to work out among themselves. b. If you really want this opportunity, talk to your supervising attorney. Tell h/her that the federal law overrides state law in this situation. Provide citations to court cases and/or statutes that have supported legal assistant representation before federal agencies. c. The freaked-out partner is correct. If State law says paralegals can't represent in front of State agencies, that automatically prohibits them from representing in front of Federal agencies. d. Change jobs.

15. Your attorney has just resumed his practice after a 12-month suspension by the State Bar Disciplinary Committee. He knows they're monitoring him, and is paranoid about doing something else wrong. He's decided, therefore, that your name will not appear on the firm's letterhead, you may not carry a business card, and you may not sign any firm correspondence, even if your status as a legal assistant is clearly indicated.

a. You can agree with him about the letterhead, but provide him with several ethics opinions showing that it's OK for you to carry a business card and sign firm correspondence, as long as your paralegal status is clear. b. Go along with his decision. You are probably better off not rocking the boat.

c. Tell him every chance you get what a wimp he's being, and provide him with a business card from every legal assistant you know. d. Who needs it? Change jobs.

16. During a job interview, a potential employer asks how committed you are to the principle of "confidentiality." You: a. Explain politely that you're just starting out in the field, and you're not real sure what "confidentiality" means. You're sure you will pick it up quickly, though. b. Admit that, because "confidentiality" is such a new (i.e., modern) concept, you haven't completely formed your opinion yet. c. Expound upon the importance of the concept. This might be a good time to mention the ethical rules you're bound by, if any. d. Try to change the subject.

17. Back in the Middle Ages, Frank went to see his lawyer, Harry. As always, they met at the Peasant Market in the center of the village, a place bustling with people buying and selling, swapping and trading. Frank had had his conversations with Harry overheard at the Market before, to his later embarrassment. He wished they could meet some place more private. How can he tell Harry everything he needs to say, if he can't be sure Harry is the only one who will hear it? a. Frank has an unfortunate but common problem. Always better to be safe than sorry, though, so Frank should only tell Harry information that won't be damaging if it leaks out. b. Situations like this underlie one of the oldest foundations of legal ethics: confidentiality.

c. Both in the Middle Ages and now, Frank can only expect confidentiality from Harry if Harry is a member of the American Bar Association. d. It is unrealistic and naive for any client to expect complete confidentiality from his attorney.

18. A client of your firm refuses to talk directly to, or discuss anything with, anyone at your firm other than an attorney. He is afraid his communications with you, a legal assistant, will not be protected by the attorney-client privilege. He doesn't care what any dang code of ethics says. He insists that your firm conform to the law. a. Provide your attorney with case law and ethics opinions, etc., that extend the attorneyclient privilege to paralegals. Perhaps your attorney could mention or provide this to the client, and explain that you're bound by the same rules of confidentiality as the lawyer. b. No problem. As long as the lawyer is always the one to talk to the client, you can still do all the work and your firm can bill the client at your lawyer's rate. c. What a pain! From now on, let the next client who thinks you're a lawyer go ahead and think so! You won't give any legal advice, of course. d. Who needs it? Change jobs.

19.

Which of the following is/are source(s) of legal ethics? a. b. c. d. State Judicial System (i.e., court decisions) State Bar Associations State Legislatures (i.e., statutes) All of the above

20.

Circle ALL true statements: a. b. c. d. NALA is a professional paralegal association operating within the state of Arizona. NFPA is a national association of local paralegal associations. NALA administers the CLA exam. All working paralegals are bound by NALA's Code of Ethics.

21.

Which one of the following acts is NOT generally considered the "practice of law": a. b. c. d. Giving legal advice. Appearing in court on behalf of another. Conducting legal research. Deciding how much a client should be charged for your firm's legal services.

22. Which one of the following is an airtight exception to the general rule that, "Only duly licensed attorneys can practice law." a. b. c. d. A paralegal may represent a corporation in court, just not a person. A paralegal may represent him/herself in court. A paralegal may represent an individual in some types of court hearings. A paralegal may represent a family member in court

23.

If your client commits perjury during trial testimony, your attorney must: a. b. c. d. Counsel the client to withdraw the untrue testimony Withdraw from representation of the client. Report the situation to the judge and ask for the court's direction Any of the above may be required, depending on the circumstances and jurisdiction.

ESSAY: Please answer the following question in as long as it takes you to do so, but in no event longer than one page (one typed side of a page, double-spaced). Interpret and answer the question as you choose. You may use information from the text to support your answer, but no further research is required. I am also looking for evidence of independent thought. Spelling, punctuation, sentence structure, grammar, organization, expression, and sophistication of ideas count. QUESTION: Why legal ethics?