Asked and Answered

By John W. Olmstead, MBA, Ph.D, CMC

Q. I am the owner and founder of a 7 attorney personal injury plaintiff firm in the southwest. Over the years we have become the "go to" PI firm in the area. We have an extensive advertising program including TV, radio, and other mediums. I bring in all the business and the other six associate attorneys are primarily worker bees. I have discouraged business development by the associates and now as I approach my retirement years I am realizing that this may have been a mistake and it may take more than a "firm brand" for the firm to transition to the next generation. I would appreciate your thoughts.

The Illinois State Bar Association's Task Force on the Impact of Law School Curriculum and Debt on the Future of the Profession will hold seven open hearings throughout the state. The Task Force was established by President Richard D. Felice and is chaired by Hon. Ann Jorgensen, Justice of the Second District Appellate Court. ISBA members are encouraged to attend these hearings to discuss the core skill sets that new lawyers should have and how law schools can graduate more “practice ready” lawyers.

Those who provide comments should focus on:

The Solo & Small Firm Practice Institute Series: Tech Tips & Tools to Transition to the Solo & Small Firm Setting will be held from 8:15 a.m.-5:15 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 16. This program will be held at the ISBA Chicago Office, 20 S. Clark and will available via live webcast.

Find out more and register at www.isba.org/cle/2014/10/16/techtips

ISBA Mutual Liability Minute

By Joseph R. Marconi & Brian C. Langs¹, Johnson & Bell, Ltd., Chicago

Back in July of 2011, we warned of a then popular e-mail/fraudulent check scheme whereby lawyers would receive e-mails from alleged potential foreign clients looking to collect debts from customers. Those scammers convinced the unsuspecting lawyers to deposit fraudulent “settlement checks” into client accounts and wire the “clients’ share” to foreign accounts after the bogus checks cleared. When the frauds were eventually uncovered by the banks, the lawyers were left with liability to the banks for the fraudulent check and wire transfers.² Since then, newer, more complex electronic scams have surfaced whereby hackers intercept e-mails between lawyers and clients that contain wire transfer instructions. After intercepting such an e-mail, the hacker changes the instructions in the e-mail to wire money to his own untraceable account. The hacker forwards his bogus wiring instructions to the unsuspecting recipient, all while “masking” his identity as the sender and making it appear to the recipient as if the instruction came from the correct sender, whether lawyer or client.

The Illinois Supreme Court Rules Committee will seek comment at a public hearing in Chicago on a proposed amendment to a Supreme Court rule regarding personal identity information in civil case filings. The Committee will also consider comments on proposed rule changes involving motions in a reviewing court; appeals from final circuit court judgments in civil cases; and general rules governing appeals from the Appellate Court to the Supreme Court.

All of the proposals will be aired at a public hearing of the Supreme Court Rules Committee on Friday, October 10 at 10 a.m. in Chicago. Copies of all proposals are available on the Supreme Court website at: www.illinoiscourts.gov/SupremeCourt/Public_Hearings/Rules/default.asp.

In addition to performing quality legal work, many lawyers are hard at work in the community supporting a good cause, yet their contributions often go unrecognized.

IllinoisLawyerFinder.com, the ISBA’s website for the public, hosts a blog called “Lawyers Care.” In it, we share the philanthropic side of lawyers by featuring their community service, such as supporting a food and clothing drive, creating a scholarship program for a local school, or hosting an innovative fundraiser to help those in need.

Examples of previous Lawyers Care blogs can be found at www.illinoislawyerfinder.com/lawyers-care. If you want to share your story with the public, please send an email with a summary of your community work to Chris Bonjean at cbonjean@isba.org.

ISBA President Richard D. Felice received the Alumnus of the Year Award from Northern Illinois University (NIU) College of Law on Wednesday, Sept. 17, at a ceremony at the University Club of Chicago. View photos from the event at iln.isba.org/gallery/796/president-felice-receives-niu-alumnus-of-the-year-award

Felice (’79) was selected for the award based on outstanding achievements in his career, demonstrated service to the NIU College of Law, demonstrated service to his community, and professional integrity.

During his year as president, Felice is placing special emphasis on three projects. The first is the formation of a Task Force on the Impact of Law School Debt on the Future of the Profession to address the tremendous challenges facing new lawyers, including staggering law school debt and a stifling job market. The second initiative is the formation of a Solo and Small Firm Practice Institute Series, offering educational programs to solo and small firm practitioners in five settings throughout the state. The third program focuses on civics education. Working with the ISBA’s Law Related Education Committee, the organization is expanding its civics education programming to high school students and will also work with Illinois Judges Association on its “Courtroom in the Classroom” project.

Q.  Can I contact former clients with whom I had an attorney-client relationship and tell them I left my firm?

A. Comment 4 to IRPC 7.3 does not prohibit an attorney from directly contacting former clients to inform them of the attorney’s departure or to solicit their employment.

Any individual planning to leave a firm should review the case of Dowd & Dowd, LTD. V. Gleason, 352 Ill. App. 3d 365 (1st Dist. 2004) which covers many aspects such as contacting prospective clients before one has actually left their firm and other fiduciary duties  For more information, see ISBA Advisory Opinion 12-14. 

ISBA members can browse past ISBA Ethics Opinions, access our Ethics Hotline, and other resources on the ISBA Ethics Page.

[Disclaimer.  These questions are representative of calls received on the ISBA’s ethics hotline.  The information provided below is meant as an educational tool to highlight potentially applicable Illinois RPC or other ethics resources that might help the lawyer answer the question posed.  The information provided isn’t legal advice.  Because every situation is different, often complex, and the law is constantly evolving, you shouldn’t rely upon this general information without conducting your own research.]