1 ETHICS JEOPARDY September 9, 2015 Moller/Foltz

Transcript:1 ETHICS JEOPARDY September 9, 2015 Moller/Foltz:
1 ETHICS JEOPARDY September 9, 2015 Moller/Foltz American Inn of Court 2 ETHICS JEOPARDY TOSS UP QUESTION FINAL 3 COURTHOUSE ETHICS COURTHOUSE ETHICS 5 POINTS Alpha, a partner in the law firm of Alpha & Beta, represents the plaintiff in an adversary proceeding. Alpha tried the case, and the court ruled in favor of the defendant. Alpha appealed. Alpha’s brief stated, “It is uncontroverted that Deft transferred the asset without fair consideration.” In fact, Observant Accountant, a witness called by defendant, testified that defendant paid a fair price for the asset. Alpha was aware of this testimony. 4 Proceed to next slide COURTHOUSE ETHICS 5 POINTS Three days before the appeal was scheduled to be argued, Alpha suffered a heart attack. Beta, Alpha’s partner, undertook to argue the appeal. Beta knew nothing about the case and had no opportunity to confer with Alpha. In preparing for the argument, Beta read Alpha’s brief thoroughly and read as much of the trial transcript as was possible in the limited time available, but did not read the testimony of Observant Accountant. In oral argument, Beta stated to the court, “Your honors, as stated in our brief, it is uncontroverted that Defendant transferred the asset without fair consideration” 5 Proceed to next slide COURTHOUSE ETHICS 5 POINTS Is Beta subject to discipline for making this statement during oral argument? Yes, because the statement was false. Yes, because Beta did not know whether or not the statement was true but reasonably should have known it was false. No, because Beta did not know that the statement was false. No, because all Beta did not try the lawsuit. 6 COURTHOUSE ETHICS ANSWER 5 POINTS 7 Answer: (C) No, because Beta did not know that the statement was false. DR 3.03 (a) A lawyer shall not knowingly: (1) make a false statement of material fact or law to a tribunal. (b) If a lawyer has offered material evidence and comes to know of its falsity, the lawyer shall make a good faith effort to persuade the client to authorize the lawyer to correct or withdraw the false evidence. If such efforts are unsuccessful, the lawyer shall take reasonable remedial measures, including disclosure of the true facts. COURTHOUSE ETHICS 10 POINTS Following a bench trial with highly contested factual and legal issues, the court took the case under advisement. After two months, Helpful Attorney heard rumors that the