Introducing Legal Ethics for Tax Lawyers

• Author: Michael Hatfield
• Pages: 1-10

1. Introducing Legal Ethics

for Tax Lawyers

In order to apprecia te the ethical complications in which tax lawyers

often find themselves, it is essential to appreciate and understand the

greater c ontexts of legal ethics a nd the tax system. While it is

important to begin with this more general discussion of ethics a nd

tax lawy ers, it may also be useful to re-read this section after finishing

the chapter—to get a view of the forest after inspec ting some of the

trees.

1.1. Ethics for Lawyers

Ethics is practica l reasoning. It is thinking through the most

important implications of behavior. For lawyers, ethical reflection

involves considering not only the lawy er’s personal va lues but a lso

the lawyer’s roles as officers in the lega l system and as agents a nd

advisors for clients. Organizing a nd clarifying the layers of

obligations and duties implicated in lawyer behavior is the subject

matter of legal ethics. The objective is to define a lawyer’s

professional responsibilities. It is not an abstract or idealistic exercise.

A lawye r with a misunderstanding of her professional responsibilities

may find herself disbarred from the practice of law, sued by her

former clients, fined and jailed —personally miserable even if she

escapes discipline, suit, or criminal punishment.

Many ethica l considerations reflect a lawyer’s personal values, such as

the choice of practice area or choice of clients. However, legal et hics

is not simply the domain of personal values. A great many duties are

imposed on lawyers by fiduciary and c ontract laws, and, of course,

each state has its own ethics rules and means of enforcement. Most

states have adopted some version of the American Ba r Association’s

Model Rules of Professional Conduct, and many have followed the

ABA’s subsequent amendments (as amended, the “Model Rules.”) .

While the popular image of a lawyer may be a s a courtroom strategist

and dramatist focused on winning at any cost, the Model Rules reflect

the complex realities of lawyering, prescribing different standards for