Law Firms Flashcards
7 cards from real MPRE practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Law Firms flashcards as text
A law firm partner learns that an associate billed 10 hours for a task that took only 2 hours. Under the Model Rules, the partner must:
Answer: Take reasonable remedial action to prevent or mitigate consequences
Rule 5.1 requires partners to take reasonable remedial action when they know of a subordinate's ethical violation.
An attorney works at a firm that requires all associates to use a billing software that automatically rounds up time to the nearest hour. This practice:
Answer: Is permissible if disclosed in the engagement letter
Billing practices that inflate time are permissible when clients are fully informed and consent in the engagement agreement.
A non-lawyer office manager at a law firm instructs associates on how to handle client files without attorney review. Under the Model Rules, this arrangement:
Answer: Violates the prohibition on non-lawyers directing professional judgment of lawyers
Rule 5.4 prohibits non-lawyers from directing or controlling the professional judgment of attorneys.
A law firm's written policy states that associates will be disciplined for failing to meet a minimum annual billable hour requirement of 2,400 hours. This policy:
Answer: Does not itself violate the Model Rules but can pressure associates toward unethical billing
High billing quotas are not inherently unethical but create pressure that can lead to overbilling or other misconduct.
Attorney X is a junior partner at a firm. She discovers that the firm's senior partner has been converting client funds. X reports it to the firm's ethics committee, but they take no action. X should:
Answer: Report the misconduct to the appropriate disciplinary authority
When internal reporting fails to address misconduct involving client harm, Rule 8.3 may require reporting to the disciplinary authority.
A law firm advertises that it is 'the most successful personal injury firm in the state.' This statement is:
Answer: Prohibited as a false or misleading communication if it cannot be substantiated
Rule 7.1 prohibits false or misleading communications, and superlative claims that cannot be verified are misleading.
Two attorneys practice together and share office space and a receptionist but maintain completely separate client files and finances. They should be identified to clients as:
Answer: Separate solo practitioners to avoid implying they are partners
Rule 7.5 requires that lawyers not imply partnership or association where none exists, so sharing space alone does not make them a firm.