CHAPTER 11 HOT TOPICS IN LEGAL ETHICS AND ATTORNEY REGULATION

• Jurisdiction: United States

Private Oil & Gas Royalties: The Latest Trends in Litigation
(Dec 2008)
CHAPTER 11
HOT TOPICS IN LEGAL ETHICS AND ATTORNEY REGULATION
Alexander "Alec" R. Rothrock
Burns, Figa & Will, P.C.
Greenwood Village, Colorado

Alec Rothrock is a shareholder with the Englewood, Colorado law firm of Burns, Figa & Will, P.C. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree in history from the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor in 1981 and a Juris Doctor degree from DePaul University College of Law in Chicago in 1984. Mr. Rothrock practices in the areas of legal ethics and the law of practicing law. Mr. Rothrock is the author of the book, Essays on Legal Ethics and Professional Conduct in Colorado (Continuing Legal Education of Colorado, Inc. 2003) and a former chair of the Colorado Bar Association Ethics Committee.

1. Mandatory Legal Malpractice Disclosure

C.R.C.P. 227(A):

(2)(a). The annual registration statement shall be on a form prescribed by the Clerk, setting forth:

...

(4) certification as to . . . (c) with respect to attorneys engaged in the private practice of law, whether the attorney is currently covered by professional liability insurance and, if so, whether the attorney intends to maintain insurance during the time the attorney is engaged in the private practice of law; . . .

(4)(a). An attorney shall be summarily suspended if the attorney either fails to pay the fee or fails to file a complete statement or supplement thereto as required by this rule prior to May 1, provided a notice of delinquency has been issued by the Clerk and mailed to the attorney addressed to the attorney's last known mailing address at least 30 days prior to such suspension, unless an excuse has been granted on grounds of financial hardship.

2. Proposed Rule on Maintenance and Disposal of Closed Client Files

"Except as provided in a written agreement signed by a client, a lawyer shall maintain a client's files respecting a matter for a period of not less than two years following the termination of a representation in the matter, unless the lawyer has previously returned them to the client or disposed of them in accordance with the client's instructions, or the client already possesses them. Notwithstanding any agreement to the contrary, a lawyer shall not destroy a client's files after termination of the lawyer's representation in the matter unless (1) the lawyer has given written notice to the client of the lawyer's intention to do so on or after a date stated in the notice, which date shall not be less than thirty days after the date the notice was given, and (2) there are no pending or threatened legal proceedings known to the lawyer that relate to the matter. At any time following the expiration of a period of ten years following the termination of a representation in a matter, a lawyer may destroy a client's files respecting the matter without notice to the

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client, provided there are no pending or threatened legal proceedings known to the lawyer that relate to the matter and there is no agreement to the contrary."

3. Confidentiality in Attorney Regulation System

"C.R.C.P. 251.31(b) Confidentiality. Before the filing and service of a complaint as provided in C.R.C.P. 251.154 , the proceedings are confidential within the Office of the Regulation Counsel, the committee, the...