MPRE Law Firms 4 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A large law firm operates a legal staffing subsidiary that places contract attorneys with other firms. The subsidiary is wholly owned by the law firm. Under the Model Rules, this arrangement:
- Is prohibited as unauthorized practice of law
- Requires compliance with rules on non-lawyer assistance and fee splitting (Correct answer)
- Is fully permissible as a business ancillary to legal practice
- Is only permissible if the contract attorneys are supervised by partners
Correct answer: Requires compliance with rules on non-lawyer assistance and fee splitting
Rule 5.4 and 5.7 require that ancillary business services comply with rules on fee splitting, supervision, and non-interference with professional judgment.
Question 2: A law firm partner seeks to settle a malpractice claim with a former client by offering compensation conditioned on the client not reporting the misconduct to the bar. This condition:
- Is permissible if the client's attorney negotiates the agreement
- Is prohibited because it restricts reporting of professional misconduct (Correct answer)
- Is acceptable when the settlement amount is substantial
- Is valid only if the client independently decides not to report
Correct answer: Is prohibited because it restricts reporting of professional misconduct
Rule 8.4 and 8.3 principles prohibit conditioning settlements on a client's agreement to refrain from reporting professional misconduct.
Question 3: An attorney at a large firm is asked by a senior partner to alter the dates on documents in a client's file to make them appear to have been created earlier. The attorney should:
- Comply if instructed by a supervising partner under Rule 5.2
- Refuse and take steps to prevent or mitigate the harm (Correct answer)
- Alter the documents but keep a personal record of the true dates
- Report only to the client, not to any authority
Correct answer: Refuse and take steps to prevent or mitigate the harm
Rule 5.2 states that a subordinate attorney must not follow instructions that constitute a clear ethical violation such as document falsification.
Question 4: A law firm that practices exclusively immigration law wants to call itself 'The Immigration Law Specialists.' Under the Model Rules, this name:
- Is permissible without restriction since the firm only handles immigration matters
- May only be used if each attorney at the firm is certified as a specialist by an approved organization (Correct answer)
- Is always prohibited as a misleading specialization claim
- Can be used if the firm has practiced immigration law for at least five years
Correct answer: May only be used if each attorney at the firm is certified as a specialist by an approved organization
Rule 7.4 restricts use of 'specialist' terminology to lawyers certified by an organization approved by the state bar.
Question 5: A law firm employs a suspended attorney as a paralegal during the attorney's suspension period. Under the Model Rules, this arrangement:
- Is never permissible under any circumstances
- May be permissible if the suspended attorney is supervised and performs only non-legal tasks (Correct answer)
- Is permissible if the suspension was for a non-client-related offense
- Requires court approval before the suspended attorney may begin working
Correct answer: May be permissible if the suspended attorney is supervised and performs only non-legal tasks
A suspended attorney may work in a law firm in a non-legal capacity only under adequate supervision that prevents unauthorized practice of law.
Question 6: A law firm's retainer agreement includes a clause stating: 'Client waives the right to file any bar complaint arising from this representation.' This clause is:
- Enforceable if the client is a sophisticated business entity
- Void and unenforceable as contrary to public policy (Correct answer)
- Permissible if accompanied by independent legal advice
- Valid if the waiver is signed after the representation concludes
Correct answer: Void and unenforceable as contrary to public policy
Agreements that prospectively waive a client's right to report misconduct are void as against public policy under professional conduct rules.
Question 7: A law firm partner wants to use a client's name in firm marketing materials as a reference without the client's authorization. Under the Model Rules, this practice:
- Is permissible if the client is a public company
- Violates the duty of confidentiality even if the representation is common knowledge (Correct answer)
- Is allowed if the client's name was mentioned in public court filings
- Is permitted when the matter has been concluded for more than one year
Correct answer: Violates the duty of confidentiality even if the representation is common knowledge
Rule 1.6 prohibits disclosing information relating to a client's representation, including using a client's name for marketing, without consent.
MPRE Law Firms 4
A large law firm operates a legal staffing subsidiary that places contract attorneys with other firms.
The subsidiary is wholly owned by the law firm.
Under the Model Rules, this arrangement: