Current Ethical Issues for In-House Counsel & Those Who Advise Them: Litigation Perspectives

Originally held on Wednesday, June 17, 2020 | 4:00 pm – 6:00 pm

• Description
• Faculty
• Agenda
• CLE Credit
• Sponsors

• This ethics program is designed especially for in-house counsel and outside counsel advising their in-house clients. Using a stimulating series of hypotheticals based on real-life experience, a panel of experts will review a variety of important professional responsibility issues that affect corporate counsel on a daily basis.

  Program Fee:
  $69 for Members | $169 for Nonmembers
  Members who are Recent Law Graduates, Newly Admitted Lawyers (admitted for the first time in any state or country 2018-2020), In-House/Corporate Counsel, Judges, or attorneys that practice within the Government, Academic or Not-for-Profit sectors attend this program for free.

• Adrienne K. Eason-Wheatley
  Managing Counsel, The Bank of New York Mellon

  Alexandra Harwin
  Sanford Heisler Sharp, LLP

• 4:00 p.m. – 4:10 p.m.
  Introduction & Overview of Hypothetical

  4:10 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.
  o Ethics of Negotiating Dispute Settlements
  o Hard Bargaining vs. Extortion: where is the line?
  o Recent case law involving accused lawyers

  4:30 p.m. – 4:50 p.m.
  o Settlement agreement: What does the board and the auditors need to know about the matter?
  o Document destruction in the settlement context
  o Use of Non-Disclosure Agreements, including in sexual harassment cases
  o Duty of General Counsel to investigate settling claims

  4:50 p.m. – 5:05 p.m.
  o Attorney-client privilege in the in-house context
  o How do courts view communications that involve both business and legal advice?
  o Privilege in connection with compliance investigations

  5:05 p.m. – 5:25 p.m.
  o Is surreptitious taping by a lawyer ethical?
  o Interstate taping issues
  o What limits exist on an employer’s right to access documents contained on an employee’s company-issued personal device?

  5:25 p.m. – 5:40 p.m.
  o Considerations in retaining outside counsel to assist in an investigation
  o When can/should a lawyer interview an employee without recommending counsel for the employee?
  o How should a lawyer respond when an employee asks whether they need counsel?
  o What can/should a company do when an employee refuses to cooperate?
  o Consequences to the employee of lying in an internal inquiry

  5:40 p.m. – 5:50 p.m.
  o What happens when the company refuses to take steps the lawyer believes necessary?
  o Can a lawyer seeking ethics or legal advice about their obligations disclose confidential company information to his or her own counsel?
  o Under what circumstances can an in-house lawyer disclose confidential information to defend herself against charges of wrongdoing?
  o Can the lawyer “go public” with confidential information that she believes is of critical importance to the public?
  o Can an in-house lawyer rely on confidential information to state a claim for wrongful discharge?

  5:50 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.
  Question / Answer Session

• CLE Credit
  New York: 2.0 Ethics
  New Jersey: 2.4 Professional Responsibility
  California: 2.0 Professional Responsibility
  Pennsylvania: 2.0 Professional Responsibility
  Connecticut: Available to Licensed Attorneys

  Please Note: Newly admitted NY attorneys cannot fulfill ethics or skills credits through our on-demand programs under OCA rules. For more information on this, please see http://www.nycourts.gov/attorneys/cle/changes_for_2016.shtml.

• Sponsoring Association Committees:
  In-House Counsel, Jack Lerner & Michael Patrick Hogan, Co-Chairs
  Professional Ethics, Tyler Maulsby, Chair
  Professional Responsibility, Wallace L. Larson, Chair

  Sponsorship Opportunities are Available! Please Contact:
  Angie Avila, Manager, Membership Outreach and Sponsorships | (212) 382-6608 | aavila@nycbar.org

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