Law ethics, also known as legal ethics in some countries, can be said to be the codes by which legal professionals work in the performance of their duties and to which they owe themselves, their clients, and each other. Usually, failure to abide by the code of legal ethics leads to expulsion from the law profession, suspension, or sometimes a lesser penalty. The law ethics do not necessarily apply to the law profession alone, but they can be adequately used in other professions about the protocol they are expected to use and follow in those specific professions. In this case, they can also be referred to as “professional ethics”. This annotated bibliography focuses on different sources from scholarly journals, law books, newspaper/magazines, reference books to circulating books that have been written by different authors on the personal ethics that rule the legal professionals and specifically lawyers.
Hazard, G. & Dondi, A. Legal Ethics: A Comparative Study. Palo Alto, CA: Stanford University Press.
Hazard and Dondi’s book looks at the role of judges and lawyers. The role of a judge is to use his professional knowledge and experience to make sure that cases and rulings are carried out within the law’s limit. A judge is expected to sum up a case based on an unbiased assessment of the evidence presented and hand down a fair judgment after taking all considerations into account. Similarly, lawyers have a crucial function to act in maintaining professional ethics by protecting their clients from illegal restrictions and harassment. Moreover, a lawyer is expected to provide legal services to anyone in need of them. However, he/she is also expected to cooperate with the government and other institutions in search of justice, if it helps in the success of their course or if it is for the interest of the citizens.
Hazard & Dondi also state the personal virtues that a lawyer is required to have to fulfill his professional role. The virtue of competence is one of these ethical norms and requires knowledge and an understanding of the law. Due to the swift and constant change in the basics of the law, a lawyer’s knowledge can easily become outdated. Therefore, he/she would be better off specializing in one area to keep up and keep track of new information as it comes in. Competence also implies having realistic awareness of the advantages and disadvantages of the legal procedure of a certain case and the limitations or possibilities of taking it to court.
Privacy has also been addressed and in this case, it requires an attorney to withhold any information that a client gives him/her and to keep from disclosing it to anyone including his/her other clients, government officials, and even from close family members such as the spouse. This is a duty that rests on the attorney from the first meeting with the client and even after the case has been closed. This principle is a general law that is contained in the ABA ethics code and is protected by rules that disallow courts from inquiring compromising information from the attorney.
Won-je, S. (2010). Prosecutors launched an investigation into illegal surveillance. The Hankyoreh, pp.12.
This magazine article, found in the Korean newspaper (The Hankyoreh), was reported by Sohn Won-jeon how the Office of the Prime Minister was allegedly involved in the conduction of illegal investigation of a civilian, Kim Jong-ik, through its public ethics office. According to the article, four staff members in the public ethics office had violated the duty regulations which are under the National Civil Service Law which require them to carry out their duties faithfully and decorously.
However, the four individuals went against this code of ethics by investigating a civilian without going through the proper protocol to determine whether the non-government employee was eligible to be investigated. Despite the investigation being launched after a tip came in that someone was slandering the Korean president, it was still a clear violation of duty regulations and was regarded to be a criminal act. This act indicates an obvious misuse of authority by the public ethics office. Moreover, there seemed to be the use of coercion and interference of business for Kim Jong-ik.
Judicial officers, practitioners, lawyers, and even detectives should not investigate a person when there is a lack of sufficient evidence or eligibility that suggests a criminal involvement. By doing this, they are considered to be interfering in a person’s personal affairs and denying them their right to privacy. Besides, this code of ethics ensures that with sufficient evidence, only the actual criminals are prosecuted and other citizens are not put through unnecessary anguish. A lawyer should refrain from misusing the authority he carries to fulfill his/her interests that may include revenge or threatening a civilian.
Won-JE also reports that three of the four officers were let off from their job positions after being referred to a disciplinary committee. Only one officer was exempted from these punishments and only because there was no evidence to show that he participated in the direct investigation of Kim Jong-ik. By going against the codes of ethics, a lawyer is liable to such repercussions.
Peppet, S. R. (2008). The ethics of collaborative law. Journal of Dispute Resolution, Forthcoming, 7, 1-31.
Peppet’s article states that a lawyer should be committed to negotiating with his client from an early stage. If the lawyer feels that they should deal with a case by using a problem-solving approach, he should consult with his client before doing it. This code is fair to both the lawyer and his client and indicates a willingness to be open. All methods that a lawyer uses to solve a problem should be of good interest to the client and he should therefore collaborate with his client while trying to solve a problem rather than doing it by himself and alienating the client which would suggest otherwise.
In addition, the article also states that a lawyer is expected to consult with professionals from other fields if the case so requires. By doing this, there is a high probability that all means of solving the specific case have been well exhausted and this would include using any new legal cultures and methods that would be of sufficient help to the client.
Cranston, R. (1995). Legal Ethics and Professional Responsibility. Oxford: Clarendon Press.
In this book, Cranston begins by writing on the overview chapter in which he briefly and generally explains what is contained in the rest of the book. The next three chapters give an analysis of the ethical rules that pertain to the judiciary, to the bar, and solicitors. Cranston also analyses how history has determined the path of the existing rules. Without omission is the existing pressure for change, that the present rules affecting these professionals are facing in today’s world. Despite the rules having guided the legal world for a long time and despite them trying to keep pace, it is almost impossible for them not to undergo changes or they will eventually end up being left behind.
In chapter 5, Cranston discusses the issue of confidentiality. According to the author, the reason behind the maintenance of confidence is not only a private matter but a matter of public interest as well. Brindle, M. & Dehn, G (1995) observe that “there are situations where the preservation of confidence is capable of preventing proper and important concerns as to health and safety, or as to dishonesty or corruption in commercial or civic life, from coming to light.” The author here does not dwell so much on the private matter as on the public interest. He mainly looks at how breaching the confidence would cause this public interest to clash with the other public interests that favor the disclosure of information.
Chapters 6 & 7 specifically talk about the ethical problems that are in both the family and the criminal law jurisdictions. The author looks at the extent to which lawyers and judges are expected or even allowed to act when they decide that a parent is not acting responsibly in his/her parental duties. He dissects the professional responsibility that lawyers have in asserting and defining a parent’s irresponsibility by not fulfilling the task expected of him/her by nature and society to protect and provide for their children.
He also focuses on the pre-trial stages in criminal justice and the codes of conduct in such a case. Additionally, he looks at how a lawyer is expected to treat a victim or suspects. Ashworth, A. (1995) asks “What are the ethics of defending a client one knows or believes to be guilty? Is it ethically defensible to question a witness, particularly a victim, in a way that is likely to cause extreme distress to that witness? How strongly should the lawyer advise a guilty plea to a defendant who maintains innocence but against whom the evidence appears incriminating?”
Desty, R. (1887). The Supreme Court Reporter, Volume 7. United States, Supreme Court: West Pub. Co.
In this book, the author charts out the importance of creating awareness of ethical issues among professionals as they pick out and present legal issues out of factual circumstances. The author observes that one can apply a bit of philosophy in the solving of practical problems.
Desty talks about the issue of a lawyer’s fee. A lawyer should not overcharge his/her clients just as he/she would not undercharge him and in this way, make an honest and fair living. About this, there is the matter of legal aid which is almost always funded in all countries. The lack of fees in the case of a poor citizen should not be a reason for a lawyer not to help the citizen in the attainment of justice.
Despite a lot of other qualities being important virtues in legal practice, fairness is considered to be paramount. It is even more crucial in judges and judicial officers such as the jury than the other professionals. In effect to this, a judge should not preside over a case that involves a family member, friends, or colleagues. Neither should he/she hear a case in which he has a certain partiality. This is because this could make him/her give an unfair judgment due to biasness thus losing the integrity of the profession. However, even greater complications are brought up by a judge’s off-bench and non-official conduct that might suggest the slightest hint of bias.
After a comprehensive study on law ethics through the use of various documents, it is evident that legal ethics throughout most of the world’s legal systems are significantly similar. It is also apparent that without any principles of conduct to govern the law practice, a lot of hitches would stifle the profession. The code of ethics has been put in place to ensure that lawyers and clients as well as other judicial officers are aware of the limit to which they can go in any procedure they engage in. It also ensures that in the seeking of justice, no one’s rights are violated and there is an assurance of fair judgment.
In support of law ethics, this research is a clear indication of the importance of establishing principles and protocols of conduct, not only in legal practice but also in all other professions. A revision and upgrading of these protocols are required to keep up with the changing world. This would avoid outdated material being used to govern current and arising issues that were probably not addressed before. It could also be that issues that were there even way before were just not addressed comprehensively thus creating loopholes in the expected mode of ethics.
The personal values and ethics that an individual possess are also very important and go a long way in ensuring one’s success in the legal profession. Without some of these personal values, the legal system would be a failure in delivering justice. If for example, a lawyer is unable to keep the code of confidentiality, then that would create huge problems for him/her, the client, and the whole justice system. The clients would rarely give factual information to their lawyers for fear of exposure.