Ethical Risks of Offshore Outsourcing of Legal Services
Avoiding Malpractice Liability and Ethics Violations
Recording of a 90-minute CLE teleconference with Q&A
Conducted on Tuesday, August 5, 2008
Recorded event now available
Description
Law firms and corporations routinely outsource legal work to India and other foreign countries, although concerns about confidentiality and conflicts of interest abound.
Major law firms are using foreign-based lawyers for routine tasks. Fortune 500 corporations have even established in-house law departments in India, and GE outsources $3 million a year in legal work there. By 2015, it is estimated that $5.8 billion in legal services will be outsourced to India.
New York and California local bar associations and the Florida State Bar have recently published opinions on offshore outsourcing of legal work; however, many ethical concerns linger.
Listen as our panel of legal ethics specialists discusses the potential ethical pitfalls of outsourcing and provides their insights and best practices to avoid malpractice liability and ethics violations while engaged in legal outsourcing.
Outline
- Ethical considerations for offshore outsourcing
- Duty to supervise
- Attorney–client privilege
- Confidentiality
- Conflicts of interest
- Unauthorized practice of law
- Privacy/data security
- Ethics opinions
- New York City bar
- San Diego County bar
- Los Angeles County bar
- Florida state bar
- Best practices to avoid malpractice liability and ethics violations
- Obtain client consent to outsource
- Get reliable referral of law firm/lawyer/outsourcing firm
- Supervise contract workers
- Check for conflicts of interest
- Maintain client confidences
- Ensure that contract workers have tight security measures to protect confidential data
- Disclose markups on pay to foreign attorneys
- Incorporate ethical expectations in outsourcing contract
Benefits
The panel will review these and other key questions:
- How have bar opinions dealt with the confidentiality and privacy concerns arising from offshore outsourcing?
- Are non-U.S. lawyers handling U.S. cases engaged in the unauthorized practice of law?
- What protections can firms and corporations put in place to avoid liability for outsourcing?
Faculty
Michael P. Downey,
Partner
Hinshaw & Culbertson, St. Louis
He helps law firms comply with their legal and ethical obligations and advises attorneys on avoiding malpractice claims and disciplinary complaints. He teaches legal ethics at Washington University.
David R. Cohen,
Partner
K&L Gates, Pittsburgh
He concentrates in e-discovery issues, technology and intellectual property litigation, insurance coverage, real estate and other complex litigation, and appeals.
Andrew I. Dilworth,
Partner
Cooper White & Cooper, San Francisco
He concentrates in the areas of general business litigation, criminal defense, and professional responsibility. He has written several articles on professional responsibility topics.
Ordering
Online CLE - Audio Recording
Includes audio streaming of full program plus handouts (available 24 hours after live seminar).
CLE:
Pre-approved for participatory or non-traditional/alternate format credit in: CA, HI*, NY*, WV*.
Pre-approved for self-study credit in: AK, AZ, MO, MT, TX*, VT, WA.
Upon request, also available in: CO, CT*, FL, GA, ID, KY, LA*, ME, NC, ND, NE, NH, NM, NV, OR*, SC, TN, UT, WI, WY. If you are applying for credit in one of these states, make sure to select those states when placing your order.
(*Indicates that Strafford must report attendance.)
Online CLE Audio $149.00
Available 24 hours after the live event
Recorded Event
Includes full event recording plus handouts (available after live seminar).
CLE: Pre-approved for self-study credit in: AK, AZ, CA, CT, HI, MO, MT, NY, TX*, VT, WA, WV. Upon request, self-study credit is also available in: CO, FL, GA, ID, KY, ME, ND, NE, NH, NM, NV, OR, UT, WI, WY. If you are applying for self-study credit in one of these states, contact Strafford CLE at 1-800-926-7926 ext. 35 or CLE@straffordpub.com. (*Indicates that Strafford needs to process the CLE — see below to purchase this option.)
MP3 Download (Audio Only) $49.00
Available 24 hours after the live event
CD $49.00
plus $9.45 S&H
Available ten business days after the live event
CLE Credit
Strafford's live seminars qualify for CLE in every state that accredits webinars. They offer you a high quality, cost effective, and convenient CLE option, with no lost travel time or expenses.
Customer Reviews
The seminar was convenient and affordable.
Keita Middleton
The speakers were very clear, engaging and thorough.
Eric LaMons
Wilk Auslander LLP
The seminar was very informative and easy to understand.
Amy Allison
Anderson Hunter Law Firm
The presenters were lucid, articulate, and informative. The seminar exceeded my expectations.
Irvin Slate
Slate Law Office
The teleconference contained information that was relevant, useful and up-to-date.
Mark Hegedus
Spiegel & McDiarmid
Our Guarantee
Strafford webinars and teleconferences are backed by our 100% Unconditional Money-Back Guarantee: if you are not satisfied with any of our products, simply let us know and get a full refund. For more information regarding complaints and refunds, please contact us at 1-800-926-7926 ext 10.