Legal Ethics
New CBA Conduct Code Offers Solution to Canadian Conflicts Issue
Posted Aug 18, 2008, 12:32 pm CST
By Martha Neil
A former president of the Canadian Bar Association has been an easy mark in recent years for savvy litigants in family law cases. If they wanted to prevent her from representing a spouse in a divorce case, they made an appointment to meet with her.
Under conflicts rules, that was all it took to keep Susan McGrath, who practices in Ontario, off their case, reports the Globe and Mail. Likewise, in corporate cases, a company whose executives knew how to play this game could visit all the law firms in town for a consultation, preventing a competitor from retaining them.
Now, however, a new attorney code of conduct adopted yesterday by the CBA offers alternative rules that could be adopted by bar authorities to resolve this issue.
"The CBA hopes that its new framework will be adopted by provincial law societies, which currently apply differing criteria to assessing conflicts," the newspaper writes. "It hopes that the courts will also be influenced into adopting what it views as a more realistic standard when making findings of conflict."
Related Stories
- Graduate of Non-ABA-Accredited Law School Can Take Massachusetts Bar Exam
Nov 21, 2008, 02:26 pm CST - Deputy Calif. DA is Charged in Alleged Rape of Colleague
Nov 21, 2008, 01:15 pm CST - Former Mexican Drug Czar Got $450K to Keep Traffickers Informed, Authorities Say
Nov 21, 2008, 11:44 am CST - Add 11 UK Lawyers to Mayer Brown’s Attorney Layoff List
Nov 21, 2008, 10:13 am CST
Related Topics
Commenting is not available in this weblog entry.
Comments
Be the first to comment.