Re: Proposed Formal Opinion Interim No. 12-0003 (Attorney Directory and Rating Websites)

This proposed opinion out for public comment takes a very practical approach for attorneys on how to deal with third party websites that describe attorneys, their clients and their practices. Important points are included on using disclaimers on testimonials from clients and correcting inaccurate information posted by others about the attorney. The draft opinion also discusses claiming a profile on a third party website by exercising control over the profile, which triggers the lawyer’s ethical obligations, as well as a lawyer’s abandonment of a profile on a third party website. Whether the recommended approaches are practical in the digital world is one issue that may be evaluated further via the public comment process as this proposed ethics opinion moves forward. Many third-party websites may not facilitate the recommended actions.

About Carole J. Buckner

Carole J. Buckner is a Partner and General Counsel with Procopio in San Diego, California. She is an AV Peer Review Rated sole practitioner admitted to the California State Bar in 1984. She holds a BA from the University of California at Berkeley (1980) and a JD from the University of California, Hastings College of the Law in San Francisco (1984). She is available for consulting and legal advice in the field of legal ethics and issues involving professional responsibility, and the law of lawyering.