Practice Test Geeks(ALA) Association of Legal Administrators CLM Practice Test
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Professional Ethics and Conduct Flashcards

7 cards from real ALA practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.

Read the first 7 Professional Ethics and Conduct flashcards as text

  1. A legal administrator receives a subpoena requesting firm financial records related to a client matter. The most appropriate initial response is to:

    Answer: Notify supervising attorneys immediately so privilege and confidentiality issues can be evaluated

    Subpoenas affecting client matters require immediate attorney involvement to assess privilege and confidentiality protections.

  2. Which of the following actions would most likely constitute unauthorized practice of law by a legal administrator?

    Answer: Advising a client on the legal merits of their case

    Providing legal advice to clients is reserved for licensed attorneys; doing so as a non-attorney is unauthorized practice of law.

  3. In managing law firm personnel, an administrator who retaliates against an employee for reporting an ethical violation has breached which core professional duty?

    Answer: Duty of non-retaliation and fair treatment

    Retaliation against whistleblowers violates fair treatment obligations and undermines the firm's ethics reporting culture.

  4. A legal administrator who uses firm resources—such as computers and staff time—for personal projects is violating which ethical principle?

    Answer: Duty of loyalty and stewardship of firm assets

    Using firm resources for personal benefit violates the administrator's fiduciary obligation to act in the firm's best interest.

  5. When a legal administrator identifies a potential data breach affecting client files, the first priority should be to:

    Answer: Notify relevant attorneys and initiate the firm's incident response protocol immediately

    Immediate internal notification and activation of incident response procedures protects clients and the firm from further harm.

  6. The principle of 'accountability' in the ALA Code of Professional Responsibility requires legal administrators to:

    Answer: Take ownership of both individual actions and outcomes of their management decisions

    Accountability means owning the full scope of management decisions and their outcomes, not deflecting responsibility.

  7. A legal administrator is asked to sign a document certifying accuracy of financial information they have not personally verified. The ethical response is to:

    Answer: Refuse to sign until personally verifying the information or clearly noting the reliance on others

    Signing documents certifying accuracy requires personal verification or explicit disclosure that the certification relies on others' representations.