Should a Newbie Solo Lawyer Represent Lindsay Lohan?
Carolyn Elefant started an interesting discussion on her My Shingle blog about whether a newly licensed lawyer should be willing to represent celebrity Lindsay Lohan in appealing her recent sentencing to 90 days in jail. It has been reported that Lohan’s lawyer in the case, Shawn Chapman Holley, no longer represents her. Rumors quickly surfaced that a lawyer licensed in November 2009, Tiffany Feder-Cohen, has taken on the representation of Lohan.
As the old saying goes, “Even bad publicity is good publicity.” This high profile case catapulted a brand new, unknown lawyer into the spotlight. Would you leap to take the case if you were in her shoes?
Elefant says there isn’t that much a new lawyer can actually screw up in the appeal of a case that Lohan is almost certain to lose. It may be that the outcome of an appeal would be about the same for Lohan even with a highly experienced attorney, but if Feder-Cohen makes a procedural error, Lohan’s prior behavior would suggest that she would be likely to blame anyone but herself for her predicament. I would suggest that Feder-Cohen should make sure she has a malpractice policy that doesn’t get reduced in coverage by the amount of defense costs expended, because the case could be protracted.
If we assume she has adequate malpractice insurance, one might urge Feder-Cohen to take the case. Even if she screws up, will her reputation really get damaged? Wouldn’t the public tend to blame Lohan for hiring an inexperienced lawyer and cut Feder-Cohen some slack as a newbie? Could it still be a net gain for Feder-Cohen?
Feder-Cohen could have more at stake than malpractice claims and her reputation, however. She might be in violation of her ethical duty and subject to a grievance for even taking the case. If she were practicing in Texas, I would advise her to associate a more experienced lawyer in the case. Rule 1.01 of the Texas Rules of Disciplinary Conduct provides: “A lawyer shall not accept or continue employment in a legal matter which the lawyer knows or should know is beyond the lawyer’s competence, unless…another lawyer who is competent to handle the matter is, with the prior informed consent of the client, associated in the matter.” It would be pretty easy to assert that Feder-Cohen “should know” that the matter is beyond her competence to handle alone, if she has been licensed less than a year.
The California Rules of Professional Conduct resemble the Texas rules on this subject. Rule 3-110 provides that a lawyer “shall not intentionally, recklessly, or repeatedly fail to perform legal services with competence.” Under the rule, “competence” requires the learning and skill reasonably necessary, but if a lawyer doesn’t already have it, the lawyer can associate with or consult with a competent lawyer to fulfill that requirement.
Even if Feder-Cohen gets over the hurdle of legal competence, she’ll still have to deal with the media frenzy. As other comments to Elefant’s post have already noted, Feder-Cohen should hire a good media consultant to help navigate those treacherous waters.
Finally, there is one other issue that Feder-Cohen may need our guidance in handling…her client engagement agreement. According to People magazine, Feder-Cohen identified herself to the L.A.Sheriff’s office as Lohan’s new attorney. Another online gossip rag, RadarOnline.com reports “the attorney for Lindsay’s mom Dina, tells us, ‘Tiffany Feder-Cohen is not Lindsay’s attorney and never was. She is just a good friend who is helping out. Lindsay’s new attorney will be announced today.’
This whole scenario is starting to sound like one made up for a law school exam in a Professional Responsibility class. What other issues can you identify?
Post Date: July 9, 2010
Making Your Criminal Practice More Rewarding
“The variety in a criminal law practice keeps it enjoyable. Familiarity at the courthouse makes it fun,” says Austin solo Erik Goodman, who has been board certified in criminal law since 1985. Houston criminal attorney John Parras agrees. “People charged with crimes are wealthy, poor, smart, dumb, funny, eccentric, boring, interesting and mundane. The scenarios that bring them to court are sad, funny, interesting, complicated, simple, stupid, and entertaining,” according to Parras, who has been designated as a Super Lawyer – Rising Star and began his legal career as a law clerk to Michael Tigar and Ron Woods in the Oklahoma City Bombing trial.
Yet many criminal attorneys suffer from stress and burnout. Others struggle to make ends meet. How can you keep your practice manageable, enjoyable and financially successful, too? Read more
Post Date: July 6, 2010
It’s Never Too Early to Raise Your Profile
In today’s fast-paced legal world, it is easy for young lawyers to convince themselves that they don’t have time to worry about networking, raising their profile and creating a personal brand. Have you ever said anything like this to yourself?
“It already takes Herculean effort to meet the billable hour requirements around here. I’m not going to waste my time giving away free advice or hanging out with a bunch of schmoozers.”
“I went to a smaller firm so I wouldn’t have to put on a game face. The partners here like my work, and that’s enough.”
“The point of going in-house was so I wouldn’t have to play politics and could have time for a life. I only need to keep my boss happy.”
“I’m just an associate. Clients aren’t going to come to me anyway, so why bother?
Why That’s Foolhardy
Even before the “Great Recession,” Read more
Post Date: April 14, 2010
Nice Guys Are Good for Business
Back in 2005 I wrote Who Says Nice Guys Finish Last? The post recounted how attorneys have generated more business by putting their focus on helping others, even in ways that have nothing to do with the law. It also discussed the psychological underpinning of their success.
In the wake of the financial meltdown, there is growing evidence (cited by Time magazine, Fortune magazine and Harvard Business Review) that the “do well by doing good” philosophy is gaining a foothold in the corporate world. Maybe we are getting beyond the Gordon Gekko/ Ivan Boesky philosphy that “greed is good.” I hope more of our legal colleagues take note, too.
At least one Harvard Law grad is leading the way. Dov Seidman, author of the bestseller HOW: Why HOW We Do Anything Means Everything … in Business (and in Life) opines that “winner-take-all” strategies are obsolete. He partially credits the increased difficulty in hiding unethical and greedy business behavior in this era of bloggers, YouTube, Twitter and other social media.
Fortune Magazine recently published Why Doing Good Is Good for Business about Seidman’s rise as a management guru from providing training in ethics and legal compliance. The Fortune article says he
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Post Date: March 16, 2010