Professional Responsibility
Elon Law School
Fall 2024
Room 207
Monday & Wednesday 9:45–10:45 am
Professor: Eric M. Fink
336-279-9334
Office Hours: https://calendly.com/emfink
Teaching Assistant: Ashe Cooper
Description
This course is intended to acquaint students with the organization and regulation of the legal profession, the nature of the attorney-client relationship, and the duties that attorneys owe to clients and others. Upon successfully completing the course, students should be familiar with the ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct and other sources of law governing the legal profession, and be able to apply these rules to issues that arise in legal practice. The course will also help prepare students for the Multistate Professional Responsibility Examination (MPRE), but will not cover all of the topics tested on that exam.
Materials
Required
Casebook: Professional Responsibility: An Open-Source Casebook (v.2.1 2023). Available on the course website: emfink.net/PR. The website also has review questions and links to other resources.
Suggested
Hornbook: Grace M. Giesel, Mastering Professional Responsibility (2d ed., Carolina Academic Press 2015).
Policies
Grading
Your grade will be based on a final examination consisting of multiple choice questions, similar in format to the Multistate Professional Responsibility Examination (MPRE). You will receive a copy of the Rules of Professional Conduct to use during the exam, which will otherwise be closed-book/closed-notes. The exam will take place during the Fall Term exam period (Dec. 2-9, date and time TBA)
Attendance
Elon Law School has adopted the following attendance policy for all courses:
The Law School administers a policy that a student maintain regular and punctual class attendance in all courses in which the student is registered, including externships, clinical courses, or simulation courses. Faculty members will give students written notice of their attendance policies before or during the first week of class. These policies may include, but are not limited to: treating late arrivals, early departures, and/or lack of preparation as absences; imposing grade or point reductions for absences, including assigning a failing grade or involuntarily withdrawing a student from the class; and any other policies that a professor deems appropriate to create a rigorous and professional classroom environment.
In case of illness or emergency, students may contact the Office of Student and Professional Life, which will then notify the student’s instructors. A student may notify the faculty member directly of a planned absence and should refer to individual faculty members regarding any policy that may apply. In the case of prolonged illness or incapacity, the student should contact the Office of Student and Professional Life.
Disability Accommodations
For disability accommodation requests, contact Monica Isbell, misbell@elon.edu, Director of Disability Resources.
Honor Code
The Law School honor code applies to all activities related to your law school study, including conduct during class and examinations.
Schedule & Assignments
Date | Topic | Assignment |
---|---|---|
I: The Legal Profession & Regulation of Lawyers | ||
September 4 | Regulatory Institutions | Casebook, Chap. 1, § 1; Giesel, Chap. 1 |
September 6 & 9 | Professional Gatekeeping | Casebook, Chap. 1, § 2; Giesel, Chap. 2 |
II: Advertising & Solicitation | ||
September 11 | Advertising; Solicitation | Casebook, Chap. 2; Giesel, Chap. 45 & 46 |
III: The Attorney-Client Privilege | ||
September 16 | Establishing & Ending an Attorney-Client Relationship | Casebook, Chap. 3, § 1; Giesel, Chap. 4, 11, & 12 |
September 18 | Attorney as Agent, Client as Principal | Casebook, Chap. 3, § 2; Giesel, Chap. 8 & 14 |
September 23 | Organizational Clients | Casebook, Chap. 3, § 3; Giesel, Chap. 13 |
September 25 | Attorney Fees & Client Property | Casebook, Chap. 3, § 4; Giesel, Chap. 9 & 10 |
IV: The Duty of Care | ||
September 30 & October 2 | Competence, Malpractice, & Ineffective Assistance | Casebook, Chap. 4; Giesel, Chap. 5-7, 24 |
V: Confidentiality & Privileges | ||
October 7 & 9 | Duty of Confidentialty | Casebook, Chap. 5, § 1; Giesel, Chap. 15 |
October 14 & 16 | Attorney-Client Privilege & Work-Product | Casebook, Chap. 5, § 2; Giesel, Chap. 16 |
VI: Conflicts of Interest | ||
October 21 & 23 | Concurrent Client Conflicts | Casebook, Chap. 6, § 1; Giesel, Chap. 17 & 18 |
October 28 & 30 | Conflicts Involving the Lawyer’s Interests | Casebook, Chap. 6, § 2; Giesel, Chap. 21 |
November 4 & 6 | Former Client Conflicts & Imputation | Casebook, Chap. 6, §§ 3 & 4; Giesel, Chap. 19, 20, 22, & 23 |
VII: Duties in Litigation | ||
November 11 & 13 | Integrity of the Proceedings | Casebook, Chap. 7, § 1; Giesel, Chap. 26-32 |
November 18 | Prosecutorial Misconduct | Casebook, Chap. 6, § 2; Giesel, Chap. 33 |
VIII: Interactions with Non-Clients | ||
November 20 | Truthfulness & Fairness; Dealing with Represented Persons; Dealing with Unrepresented Persons | Casebook, Chap. 7; Giesel, Chap. 35-37 |
November 25 | Final Review | |
TBA | Final Exam |