Paralegals: The Legal And Ethical Dilemmas

Model Rule 5.5(B)- Attorney Howe, left a new hire, Carl, unattended, while also suggesting that he may conduct interviews in his office without specifying particulars regarding his presence or direct supervisory responsibilities. In hindsight, Attorney Howe could be indirectly contributing to the unauthorized practice of law due to his gross negligence to supervise his paralegal.

Model Rule 5.5(B)- Attorney Howe, left a new hire, Carl, unattended, while also suggesting that he may conduct interviews in his office without specifying particulars regarding his presence or direct supervisory responsibilities. In hindsight, Attorney Howe could be indirectly contributing to the unauthorized practice of law due to his gross negligence to supervise his paralegal.

Wasserstrom also considers the fact that in many situations lawyers have the optional ability to remove themselves form issues that may contradict their individual ethics. "Having once agreed to represent the client, the lawyer in under an obligation to do his or her best to defend that person at trial." With in the process of contracting a lawyer, the lawyer has the option of acceptance or refusal of representing the client. Therefore the lawyer can asses the case and decide if it violates any of their own individual ethics.

Criminal law paralegals provide assistance to defense attorneys and prosecutors. Their duties include drafting documents, doing research, interviewing witnesses, putting together discovery information, communicating with other parties, and assisting attorneys when they are in

In order to complete this assignment we must first recognize what Unauthorized Practice of Law is when it comes to paralegals. There is no set definition on what UPL is but as a paralegal there are guidelines to go by. Some ways they can violate the practice of law would be an individual holding themselves as an attorney when they are paralegals, giving legal advice as an attorney would, or representing clients in a court of law. All of the previous are violations and can be subject to several disciplinary actions [ (Unauthorized Practice of Law, 2010) ]. It has been named illegal due to the damages on may suffer due to bad legal advice. In some states it is considered a criminal offense and could be given a jail sentence.

Regardless if a paralegal knows the answer to a client’s legal question, they must never give that client any advice or direction for applying case law recommendations and remedies to the client’s legal question. Furthermore, when a paralegal is working in a law firm and they come into contact with a client, whether it be interviewing

As a paralegal I am not sure if in this case I would have any ethical issue. The ethical question would apply more of the relationship between the attorney and client. If the paralegal finds unethical to work on a case where the client is obviously obsess with money and nothing else, and perhaps is willing to do anything to keep his business assets, than the paralegal can asked to not work on the case. In my opinion, to even work in family law practice that takes a special person. Perhaps, someone who understands, that every person have different values and is willing to take extra measures to achieve his or her goal. As well as, probably in every divorce case, one of the spouses is just like Mary Johnson and the other very similar to Samuel

Legal information can be given by anyone with law knowledge, a simple statement only of what the law states is legal information, that person leaves it up to the individual to decide how they want to proceed with their case. Generally, legal information is given at no cost. When giving legal advice a paralegal may discuss drafting or revising and official legal document with the oversight of a practicing attorney. A paralegal may discuss with clients legal information consisting of a question whether or not a certain act is legal but may not give legal advice based off of the clients responses. If a paralegal is not setting legal fees, undertaking representation, giving legal advice, or representing a client in court, a paralegal may assist an attorney with anything else. When assisting clients a paralegal does have the right to type up forms for clients however they may not aid in helping them fill out the form. When filling out a form the paralegal could accidentally give advice on what to put and giving legal advice as a paralegal is against the

Detlor Paralegal Services will cater to three primary target clients. These clients are; landlords and property managers, victims of crime, and people who can afford to bring and defend lawsuits in Small Claims Court.

Since paralegals can only work under the supervision of an attorney, by doing the opposite may be consider an unauthorized practice of law, so paralegals must avoid assisting in the unlicensed practice of

It is a task in itself for one, such as myself, to allow another to fully grasp the principle of why I want to become a paralegal, let alone explain it within three pages without simply stating, “I desire to use the set of skills and passion that I possess in order to help others while working within this specific field of law.” Nevertheless, the reality of the fact is that it is purely the essence and core of why I have the drive and determination to work towards becoming a paralegal.

Justice. It is something that everyone wants, something that we strive for, even something that sparks. However, when we think of lawyers, we think of superheroes with an expensive education, walking into the courtroom and serving up justice. What no one thinks of is the person that helped the lawyer get there, the paralegal that prepares the necessary documents, the paralegal that makes sure his or her attorney is at the right place at the right time. A paralegal is crucial and in some cases vital to our justice system yet they are so often over looked.

“Some in the profession argue that since paralegals are supervised by attorneys, there is no need for mandatory licensure, certification, or registration. Others contend that since paralegals are trained to assist in the delivery of complex legal services, there should be a mandatory competence credential in order to protect the public.” (2001)

Merriam-Webster dictionary defines an ethical dilemma as a problem where a person has to choose between a moral and an immoral act. Attorneys come into contact daily which involves the attorney-client relationships. The attorney-client privilege is a legal privilege that works to keep communications between a lawyer and his/her client secret (silence is golden). The privilege is a legal doctrine that protects confidential information, the contents and actions related to the privileged communication must preserve the integrity of the attorney-client privilege. This paper presents the ethical dilemmas of the attorney-client privileges, trust and the importance of adequate closure in attorney-client relationships.

The paralegal should avoid all conduct that undermines the integrity of the litigation process. They have an obligation not to mislead the court or opposing counsel.