MPRE Public Service 5

Question 1

Model Rule 6.5 provides a limited exception for lawyers providing short-term legal services under which of the following circumstances?

Accepted Answer

Services under the auspices of a nonprofit or court-annexed program where the lawyer reasonably expects no continuing representation.

Answer

Rule 6.5 applies specifically to short-term services offered through nonprofit or court-annexed programs where ongoing representation is not anticipated.

Question 2

Under Rule 6.5, the conflict of interest check required for short-term limited legal services is:

Accepted Answer

Reduced: the lawyer need only check for actual knowledge of conflicts, not conduct a full firm-wide search.

Answer

Rule 6.5 relaxes the conflict check to actual knowledge because a comprehensive firm-wide search would be impractical and would deter lawyers from participating in such programs.

Question 3

A lawyer volunteers at a courthouse self-help center under Rule 6.5. During a brief session, she advises a person on landlord-tenant law. That same day she discovers her firm represents the landlord in the very dispute. Under Rule 6.5, she:

Accepted Answer

Must withdraw from assisting the tenant because she now has actual knowledge of the conflict.

Answer

Rule 6.5's reduced conflict check applies only where there is no actual knowledge of a conflict; upon learning of the conflict, the attorney must withdraw from the assistance.

Question 4

Rule 6.5's relaxed imputation rules mean that a conflict disqualifying one lawyer in a short-term services program is:

Accepted Answer

Not imputed to other lawyers in the firm unless the lawyer who provided the service knew of the conflict.

Answer

Under Rule 6.5, imputation to other firm lawyers is limited — only the participating lawyer's actual-knowledge conflicts are imputed, avoiding deterrence of law firm participation in pro bono programs.

Question 5

Which of the following best explains why Model Rule 6.5 was adopted?

Accepted Answer

To encourage lawyer participation in legal aid programs by reducing practical barriers such as comprehensive conflict checks.

Answer

Rule 6.5 was adopted to remove a practical impediment — the burden of full conflict screening — that was discouraging lawyers from volunteering in court-annexed and nonprofit legal assistance programs.

MPRE Practice Test

MPRE Practice Test

MPRE Public Service 5