...Unauthorized Practice of Law So Mr. and Mrs. Stan Smith have contacted their old pal, Polly Paralegal. They have asked her questions regarding the State of North Carolina’s grounds for divorce. Mr. Stan Smith wants to know if grounds for divorce in North Carolina include adultery. Mrs. Stan Smith would like to know the answer to a similar question as she has just found out that Mr. Stan Smith has committed adultery. Mr. and Mrs. Smith believe that Polly Paralegal will be able to answer their questions; after all she does work in the legal field right? Polly Paralegal does not have a license to practice law! Therefore, she should not answer certain questions! Mr. Stan Smith asks a very specific question, “Do the grounds for divorce in North Carolina include adultery?” Polly Paralegal should not answer Mr. Stan Smith’s question. There would definitely be some Unauthorized Practice of Law being committed if she does. Polly must advise Mr. Stan Smith to consult with an attorney, she may even refer him to the attorney she works for if divorce if possible. Now if Polly were not a paralegal, maybe she is a dog groomer instead, it would not be considered unauthorized practice of law for her to answer this question. But, Polly is a Paralegal; therefore, Polly should not answer this question. (Orlik, 2008). Now Polly must also deal with Mrs. Stan Smith. This must be awkward for her! Polly Paralegal must also remember ethics in this situation. She is a friend to both sides. Polly...
Words: 622 - Pages: 3
...UPL Unauthorized practice of law is a crucial part of our legal system and how law is administered. Also known as, UPL, this topic deserves attention so boundaries in the legal profession can be clearly understood. My question that I raise with this topic, is UPL defined well enough or is it too strict and those that can’t afford legal help suffer for it? In the American Bar Association Model Rules of Professional Conduct, it states, "A lawyer shall not practice law in a jurisdiction where doing so violates the regulation of the legal profession in that jurisdiction or assist a person who is not a member of the bar in the performance of activity that constitutes the unauthorized practice of law." What this definition indicates is that attorneys may not practice law where they are not licensed to do so and they may not assist another person in UPL. So for an attorney licensed in only one state, she/he may not practice law in another without appropriate licensure. As for another person committing UPL, this would include helping a legal assistant work outside the boundaries of their legal responsibilities as a non-lawyer professional. The goal of UPL is to protect the public from being subjected to fraudulent practice by persons not qualified to give legal counsel. In addition, when they employ legal assistants they must be cautious not to do anything less than adequately supervise their staff and ensure that UPL is not committed. Attorneys are the only ones who can give...
Words: 1552 - Pages: 7
...house. The bank cannot go after you personally and your credit score will be unaffected. I’ve been dealing with this issue for years and I’m telling you that this is the Ohio law on the matter. Unfortunately, it turns out that Dan was incorrect. When Mary defaults on her loan the next year, her credit is badly hurt. Mildred has engaged our firm to evaluate the possibility of filing a suit against Dan based on his statement to her and her reliance on it. She met with attorney, Joe, who immediately ruled out the possibility of suing him for fraud or misrepresentation, because Dan sincerely believed that what he was saying was true. Instead, Mary said to Joe, “Well, Dan isn’t a lawyer. Isn’t it wrong for him to tell me what the Ohio law is when he’s not even a lawyer?” Joe advised Mildred that this firm would research whether a person could be sued for unauthorized practice of law. Issue Based upon Ohio law, can a private cause of action exists against a non lawyer who committed the unauthorized practice of law thereby hurting the plaintiff's case? Rule Ohio Statute ORC 4705.07(A)(3) & (C)(2) A) No person who is not licensed to practice law in this state shall do any of the following: (3) Commit any act that is prohibited by the supreme court as being the unauthorized practice of law. (C) (2) Any person who is damaged by another person who commits a violation of division (A)(3) of this section may...
Words: 1840 - Pages: 8
...Unauthorized Practice of Law Regina Johnson PA253: Legal Ethics Professor Craig Dorne April 22, 2012 Abstract The purpose of this paper is to clearly establish and sustain a viewpoint of UPL (Unauthorized Practice of Law) in the state of Tennessee. The facts state that Mr. Stan Smith calls his friend, Polly Paralegal, and leaves a message asking, “Do the grounds for divorce in Tennessee include adultery?” Later that day, Mrs. Stan Smith calls Polly Paralegal and leaves a message asking, “Do I have grounds for divorce in Tennessee? I just found out that Stan committed adultery.” Questions: 1. If Polly Paralegal answers Mr. Smith’s question, will she have engaged in the unauthorized practice of law? Explain and support your answer with information for at least one authoritative reference source. 2. If Polly Paralegal answers Mrs. Smith’s question, will she have engaged in the unauthorized practice of law? Explain and support your answer with information for at least one authoritative reference source. Unauthorized Practice of Law What is the unauthorized practice of law? What does a paralegal do when they answer friends’ questions? Is Polly Paralegal committing UPL is she gives advice to her friends Mr. and Mrs. Stan Smith? By state statutes and ethics codes and the ABA Model Rules, attorneys are prohibited from aiding in the unauthorized practice of law and have an obligation to supervise their legal assistants and paralegals to ensure that they are not...
Words: 1049 - Pages: 5
...Unauthorized practice of law is when a general lay person applies a rule of law to a fact pattern. The general rule is that the practice of law is limited to those who are licensed after satisfying certain state requirements of education, moral character, and understanding of the law. (Orlik, D, Ethics for the Legal Professional Chapter 2 p. 39. In the first scenario if Polly Paralegal answers Mr. Stan Smith’s question she is committing unauthorized practice of law. The questions states do the grounds for divorce in North Carolina include adultery. Mr. Stan Smith is not asking for legal advice he is simply asking a question. Since Polly Paralegal has knowledge of the law then if and when she answers Mr. Stan Smith’s question she will be applying her knowledge of law to his fact pattern. Unauthorized Practice of Law occurs when the person is seeking legal advice from a person who he knows has legal knowledge but who is not a lawyer. (Orlik, D, Ethics for the Legal Professional Chapter 2 page 41) Although Mr. Stan Smith is asking Polly Paralegal a simple question with no implication on whether he is actually seeking legal advice he is just asking his friend for advice as a friend not a paralegal. It will be unethical of Polly Paralegal having legal knowledge to answer Mr. Stan Smith’s question. Polly Paralegal can resolve this by simply stating to Mr. Stan Smith that she is a paralegal she is not allowed to give legal advice but that she is happy to refer him to a divorce...
Words: 1058 - Pages: 5
...whether or not under Ohio law a plaintiff has a private cause of action against a nonlawyer for the unauthorized practice of law that brings harm to the plaintiff. Under Ohio Revised Code 4705.07 (A)(3) No person who is not licensed to practice law in this state shall commit any act prohibited by the supreme court as being the unauthorized practice of law. It goes on to say in Section (C) (2) that any person who is damaged by another person who commits a violation of division (A) (3) of this section may commence a civil action to recover actual damages from the person who commits the violation, upon a finding by the supreme court that the other person has committed an act that is prohibited by supreme court as being the unauthorized practice of law in violation of that division. This means that Mary does have the right to sue Dan civilly for the actual damages resulting from his unauthorized practice of law. In Cincinnati Bar Association v Foreclosure Solutions LLC 123 Ohio Street 3d 107 (Ohio 2009), the court decided that respondents engaged in the unauthorized practice of law and that an injunction and civil penalties were warranted. None of the firm's employees were licensed to practice law in Ohio or any other jurisdiction. Similiarly, in Greenspan v Third Federal Savings and Loan 122 Ohio Street 3d 455 (Ohio 2009), the court held that after the amendment to the revised code in 2004, civil penalties were warranted for the unauthorized practice of law. While the respondents...
Words: 509 - Pages: 3
...Unit 8 Assignment: Kaplan University: Unauthorized Practice of PA253: Legal Ethics 10/17/2014 Unauthorized Practice of Law Mr. Stan Smith calls his friend, “Polly Paralegal,” and Leaves a message asking, “Do the grounds for divorce In North Carolina include adultery? Later that day, Mrs. Stan Smith calls Polly Paralegal and leaves a message Asking, “Do I have grounds for divorce in North Carolina? I just found out that “Stan” committed adultery.” North Carolina Law: If you or your spouse is engaging in extra-marital “affairs,” then the position of filing an “alienation of Affections” or “criminal conversation lawsuit” against Your spouse paramour” seeking substantial money damages Against your spouse’s paramour. If that is the case, you Are well-advised to obtain proof of his or her affair. Polly Paralegal did not engage in the unauthorized Practice of law. Under the ABA Model Rules, the….Unauthorized practice of law is defined as 84-37 (c) Actions brought under this section shall be the superior Court of any county in which the acts constituting Unauthorized or unlawful practice of law are alleged To have been committed or in which there appear Reasonable grounds that they will be committed or in The county where the defendants in...
Words: 939 - Pages: 4
...ASSIGNMENT 1 LEG 107 Assignment 1 - Avoiding Unauthorized Practice of Law NEW It is widely known that utilizing paralegals is a frequent concern for practicing attorneys, especially when a paralegal’s actions may leave them performing tasks (e.g., advising on legal rights, negotiation or settlement, management of a law practice, etc.) which could result in the unauthorized practice of law. Per the American Bar Association, one must possess a law license in order to perform such tasks. Write a five to six (5-6) page paper in which you: 1. Determine three (3) most important characteristics of an effective paralegal. Justify your response. 2. Develop at least three (3) general guidelines for conducting legal research that a new paralegal should follow on in order to ensure that the attorney for whom the paralegal works is referencing valid laws within his / her legal documents. 3. Propose two (2) strategies that a paralegal could take in order to avoid the unauthorized practice of law. Provide a rationale to support your response. More Details hidden... Activity mode aims to provide quality study notes and tutorials to the students of LEG 107 Assignment 1 in order to ace their studies. LEG 107 ASSIGNMENT 1 To purchase this visit here: http://www.activitymode.com/product/leg-107-assignment-1/ Contact us at: SUPPORT@ACTIVITYMODE.COM LEG 107 ASSIGNMENT 1 LEG 107 Assignment 1 - Avoiding Unauthorized Practice of Law NEW It is widely known that utilizing paralegals...
Words: 667 - Pages: 3
...Ludington Kaplan University PA 253 D. Weigel November 7, 2014 The practice of law is limited to those who have meet their state's requirements of education, moral character, and understanding of the law. They then become licensed to practice law, one who does not hold this license and practices law is committing UPL. UPL is the unauthorized practice of law anyone who practices law without a license may be held to their states disciplinary procedures. Injunction, criminal prosecution, citations for contempt of court and writs of quo warranto are some of the actions states take for those who commit UPL. Paralegals or legal assistants are “a distinguishable group of persons who assist attorneys in the delivery of legal services”. They are not licensed to practice law. In the scenarios , Polly Paralegal’s response is the only thing that can determine if she has committed UPL. If Polly Paralegal responds to Mr. Smiths question by stating “Yes, Mr. Smith in the state of North Carolina adultery has grounds for a divorce.”, then yes Polly is committing UPL. Polly would be using her knowledge in the legal field to answer Mr. Smith’s question. If on the other hand, Polly tells Mr. Smith that she is not able to give him an answer to his question, he should seek an attorney’s advice, then no, she is not committing UPL. Polly would not be giving any legal advice to Mr. Smith, therefore, there is no practice of law taking place. The same situation will apply to Polly with Mrs....
Words: 1544 - Pages: 7
...office without specifying particulars regarding his presence or direct supervisory responsibilities. In hindsight, Attorney Howe could be indirectly contributing to the unauthorized practice of law due to his gross negligence to supervise his paralegal. ABA 5.3 (A)(B)(C). – Attorney Howe did not make reasonable efforts to supervise his paralegal. Mr. Howe knew that Carl was inexperienced in the firm as a “new-hire and should have practiced due diligence in his supervisorial duties. Attorney Howe failed to give clear guidelines and did not take immediate remedial action after Carl informed Howe that a new case was taken without his supervision. ABA 1.6 (C ) - Attorney Howe was negligent in his duty to maintain client confidentiality by leaving his office with visibly exposed client work products. Legal Assistant, Carl Jackson’s possible Ethical Violations: (Monday) NFPA-1.8(A) -Legal assistant, Carl, may have engaged in unauthorized practice of law by taking on a case without a supervising attorney’s knowledge and by giving legal advice to an inquiring client(s) regarding whether or not to pursue alimony. Furthermore, Carl negotiated the price of a fixed rate service without supervision, something only an attorney has the authority to do, which could also constitute as another act of unauthorized practice of law. EC1.7 (A)- Legal assistant, Carl ,did not identify himself as a “legal assistant” when he admitted the inquiring clients into Attorney Howe’s office, even though...
Words: 2083 - Pages: 9
...Paralegal ID: PA230-02-08-A Student: Kelly Combs Re: Security Protocols in the Law Office Date: 12-19-2011 ______________________________________________________________________________ I have researched your questions with regard to ethical compliance according to the ABA Model Rules on what is permissible to include in the firm website. The following are my findings. Please let me know if you have any additional questions regarding this matter. 1. Does the website have to list the state where s/he is licensed to practice? Yes, the website needs to state the states each attorney is licensed to practice. First and foremost, the intent of the website is to make it user friendly for the firm’s primary audience. The website needs to be organized and provide key points. A major key point would be states licensed to practice. Any communication regarding a lawyer’s services needs to be clearly stated to avoid any misconception of Unauthorized Practice of Law. Rule 5.5 Unauthorized Practice of Law; Multijurisdictional Practice of Law (b) A lawyer who is not admitted to practice in this jurisdiction shall not: (1) except as authorized by these Rules or other law, establish an office or other systematic and continuous presence in this jurisdiction for the practice of law; or (2) hold out to the public or otherwise represent that the lawyer is admitted to practice law in this jurisdiction. Rule 7.1 Communications Concerning A Lawyer’s Services A lawyer...
Words: 1248 - Pages: 5
...Unit 8 Assignment Legal Ethics March 5, 2015 Amanda Woods Before answering these questions I will explain what Unauthorized Practice of Law is. Unauthorized Practice of law is when a paralegal gives legal advice to anybody. A paralegal cannot advise a person on the law and what they can and cannot do. For example if a paralegal is asked My mother fell down the steps at her apartment building and the owner of the building has refused to fix the steps and that’s the reason she fell, legally what can we do? The paralegal cannot answer this question because it is a specific question about specific people and a specific incident. If the person had asked if a person fell down the stairs due to negligence what can be done? The paralegal could answer this question because you could find the answer on the internet and because it is a hypothetical question not a specific case. If Mr. Smith calls and leaves a message with Polly Paralegal asking if the grounds for divorce in North Carolina include adultery. Polly Paralegal can answer his question without the fear of Unauthorized Practice of Law because this is a generic question that isn’t specific about any one person or incident. She could easily do the legal research on this question and let him know what the law states. She could also give him the definition of adultery so he knows what it classified as. Because Polly Paralegal is telling Mr. Smith information that he could easily find on the internet it would not...
Words: 373 - Pages: 2
...office without specifying particulars regarding his presence or direct supervisory responsibilities. In hindsight, Attorney Howe could be indirectly contributing to the unauthorized practice of law due to his gross negligence to supervise his paralegal. ABA 5.3 (A)(B)(C). – Attorney Howe did not make reasonable efforts to supervise his paralegal. Mr. Howe knew that Carl was inexperienced in the firm as a “new-hire and should have practiced due diligence in his supervisorial duties. Attorney Howe failed to give clear guidelines and did not take immediate remedial action after Carl informed Howe that a new case was taken without his supervision. ABA 1.6 (C ) - Attorney Howe was negligent in his duty to maintain client confidentiality by leaving his office with visibly exposed client work products. Legal Assistant, Carl Jackson’s possible Ethical Violations: (Monday) NFPA-1.8(A) -Legal assistant, Carl, may have engaged in unauthorized practice of law by taking on a case without a supervising attorney’s knowledge and by giving legal advice to an inquiring client(s) regarding whether or not to pursue alimony. Furthermore, Carl negotiated the price of a fixed rate service without supervision, something only an attorney has the authority to do, which could also constitute as another act of unauthorized practice of law. EC1.7 (A)- Legal assistant, Carl ,did not identify himself as a “legal assistant” when he admitted the inquiring clients into Attorney Howe’s office, even though...
Words: 306 - Pages: 2
...12-CV-785870 ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLANT: Andrew A. Kabat Daniel M. Connell Haber Polk Kabat, L.L.P ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLEES James E. Davidson Mary F. Geswein Ice Miller L.L.P. BEFORE: E.A. Gallagher, P.J., E.T. Gallagher, J., and Laster Mays, J. JOURNAL ENTRY AND OPINION EILEEN A. GALLAGHER, PRESIDING JUDGE {¶ 1} Plaintiff-appellant Carrie Rebello appeals from the trial court's judgment entering a directed verdict on her claim for wrongful discharge in violation of public policy against defendants-appellees Lender Processing Services, Inc., et al. (collectively, "LPS").[1] Rebello claims that she was wrongfully terminated in violation of public policy from her employment at LPS because she objected to, and threatened to, report LPS's practice of password sharing among LPS employees when accessing the nonpublic customer information of one of its largest clients, JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. ("Chase"). For the reasons that follow, we reverse the trial court's judgment. Procedural and Factual Background {¶ 2} LPS is in the business of providing processing, technology and field services to clients, including mortgage lenders and financial institutions. The services provided by LPS include inspections, property validation for repairs and services and loss mitigation in connection with defaulted assets. From August 2009 until her termination on April 11, 2012, Rebello was employed by LPS as a supervisor in its property preservation department. She worked in LPS's Solon...
Words: 9250 - Pages: 37
...SEC 578- Practices Administration Physical and Operation Security Paper 1 Professor : Dr.Jude Lamour Submitted by: Otis McCall Contents Topic: 1. How do Administrative Controls demonstrate "due care?" 2 2. How does the absence of Administrative Controls impact corporate liability? 4 3. How do Administrative Controls influence the choice of Technical and Physical Controls? 6 4. How would the absence of Administrative Controls affect projects in the IT department? 7 1. How do Administrative Controls demonstrate "due care?" Administrative controls demonstrate due care by putting in place the necessary policies , procedures, and practices to reinforce policies of the organization. These controls are divided up into various elements from access list to control spaces, password and user identification for employees, separation of duties to ensure you mitigate the possibility of theft or take steps directed by management to limit incidents that can be perpetuated by employees. Thus, you cannot guard against collusion but you can have policies and procedures that limit the actual ability to carry out such incidents. The administrative controls that we will...
Words: 1531 - Pages: 7
