Some Thoughts about Current Problems in Legal Ethics and Professional Responsibility

Abstract

The legal profession is presently in an embattled position concerning matters of ethics and professional responsibility. It has been the target of stinging criticism from the President of the United States,' the Chief Justice of the United States,2 and others. Reliable surveys indicate that the profession stands at an appallingly low level of public esteem.3 Some of the reasons for this poor reputation can be traced to a public perception of the profession as greedy and self-serving. Many of the policies of the profession that have engendered this response are regulated by the present Code of Professional Responsibility as it is articulated and interpreted by the American Bar Association. The Code of Professional Responsibility addresses the full spectrum of professional activities that the practicing bar engages in and lays down specific rules for dealing with ethical matters. This discussion will focus on three of the more troublesome and controversial areas of legal ethics and professional responsibility relating to the lawyer's obligations to his client: preserving confidences of individual and organizational clients, making disclosures to the relevant tribunal