Posted: January 31st, 2023

Excluding attorney/client privilege, what are an attorney’s basic obligations to a client?

Citing passages from the various texts to support your claims, answer the following questions (no more than one page, double-spaced per question):

1. Excluding attorney/client privilege, what are an attorney’s basic obligations to a client?
2. What is attorney/client privilege? Why do Freedman and Fried think it is morally permissible to respect attorney client privilege?
3. What is the A.B.A Model Rules of Professional Conduct stance regarding conflict of interest?
PHIL
1.
Apart from attorney/client privilege, an attorney has various basic obligations to his or her client. First, the attorney is expected to properly represent the interests of the clients. If not, the attorney is required to obtain a written consent from the client to act in contrary. For instance, an attorney is required to discuss the terms of any settlement offered to the client and offer a good advice to the client (Bradley, 2012). An attorney is also required to communicate to the clients in a timely and appropriate manner. The attorney should also separate the client’s personal property from his or her property.
2.
Attorney/client privilege defines the legal concept states that it is the client’s privilege to prevent any disclosure of confidential information and communication between the client and the attorney. Such legal privilege preserves the confidentiality of the communication made between the client and attorney (Kindregan, 2011). This concept guides the attorney’s role of obtaining legal advice to the clients. The attorney has the right and legal power not to testify as information communicated from his or her client. The privilege belongs to the clients and thus, only the client could waive the privilege (Robson, 2013). Most importantly, the privilege motivates the clients to disclosure all information relating to their case to the attorney. Freedman and Fried thought that it is moral to respect the attorney client privilege, since it the right of the clients to seek legal professional advice from an attorney.
3.
The American Bar Association (A.B.A.) rule 1.7 states that loyalty and independence are crucial elements in ensuring a smooth relationship between a client and his or her attorney. Most importantly, the A.B.A model stated that conflict of interest exists only when there is a doubt that an attorney’s ability to recommend a legal action is materially limited due to the attorney other duties (Walkowiak, 2008). The A.B.A model recognizes that conflicts of interest could arise from attorney’s duties to another client. Such concurrent conflicts of interests should be cleared identified and resolved immediately (Kindregan, 2011). The model stance on conflicts of interest is that the attorney should consult with the affected clients and even obtain informed consent in writing from the client.

References
Bradley, C. A. (2012). Attorney general Bradford’s opinion and the Alien tort statute. American Journal of International Law, 106(3), 509-530.
Kindregan, C. P. (2011). Conflict of interest and the lawyer in civil practice. Valparaiso University Law Review, 10(3), 433-452.
Robson, R. (2013). The attorney in eighteenth-century England. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
Walkowiak, S. V. (2008). The Attorney-client privilege in civil litigation: Protecting and defending confidentiality. Chicago, IL: American Bar Association.

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