Remote work opportunities have risen over the last few years.  As a result, lawyers are now working from home or other remote locations, supervising lawyers and non-lawyers who are also working remotely, and exploring ways to permanently integrate virtual options into their practice. Lawyers need to be aware of their ethical responsibilities when practicing virtually to represent clients while avoiding malpractice and disciplinary issues.  Specifically, this module will discuss a lawyer's obligation to maintain competence and act diligently on behalf of clients when working remotely; unique supervisory obligations involved in managing a virtual practice; obligations to engage in reasonable and prompt communication with clients; and duty to preserve client confidences. This module will also look at how the increase in lawyer mobility as a result of virtual technologies has raised unauthorized practice of law concerns, and the important ethical considerations when practicing virtually from a state in which a lawyer is not licensed. 

In this module, you will:

• Learn the Illinois Rules of Professional Conduct that apply to a virtual law practice, and best practices on how to ethically navigate virtual work challenges;
• Apply the ethics rules to several different scenarios; and
• Reflect on how you can ethically engage in the virtual practice of law.

RESOURCES:
ARDC Articles/Ethical Guidance:

• Our Ethical Obligations During the Coronavirus Shutdown (ARDC, Mar. 20, 2020)
• The Ethics of Working Remotely from Another Jurisdiction (Mary F. Andreoni, Illinois Courts Connect, Dec. 21, 2020)

Other Written Materials/Articles

• 4 Ethical Questions for Operating a Virtual Law Office (2Civility, Mark C. Palmer, Mar. 31, 2020)
• An Attorney’s Guide to Setting Up a Remote Law Firm, MyCase
• The COVID-19-Era Firm (Ed Finkel, 109 Illinois Bar Journal 22, Mar. 2021)
• Ethical Guidance for Lawyers Working Remotely (Nicole Black, MyCase, Jan. 12, 2021)
• Illinois eFiling Instructions, Office of the Illinois Courts

Forms

• ARDC Business Continuity Plan
• ARDC Technology Checklist

ABA Formal Opinions
These opinions are based on the ABA Model Rules. The laws, court rules, regulations, rules of professional conduct, and opinions promulgated in individual jurisdictions are controlling. See ABA Jurisdictional Rules Comparison Charts (comparing each jurisdiction's rules with the ABA Model Rules).

• Virtual Practice (ABA Op. 498, Mar. 10, 2021)
• Lawyers Working Remotely (ABA Op. 495, Dec. 16, 2020)

ISBA Advisory Opinions
Available at https://www.isba.org/ethics. ISBA Advisory Opinions on Professional Conduct do not have the weight of law and do not constitute legal advice.

• Unauthorized Practice of Law; Multijurisdictional Practice (ISBA Op. 12-09, Mar. 2012)

Out of State Bar Opinions:

• CA – State Bar of California Formal Op. 2012-184: Virtual Practice of law
• DC – D.C. Op. 24-20: Teleworking from Home and the COVID-19 Pandemic.
• FL – Florida Bar Advisory Op. #2019-4: Out-of-State Attorney Working From Florida Home
• NC – North Carolina State Bar Formal Ethics Op. 2005-10: Virtual Law Practice and Unbundled Legal Services
• NY – New York City Bar Formal Op. 2019-2: Use of a Virtual Law Office by New York Attorneys (replaces 2014 opinion)
• NY – New York County Lawyers Association Ethics Formal Op. 754-2020: Ethical Obligations when Lawyers Work Remotely
• OH – Ohio Board of Professional Conduct Op. 2017-05: Virtual Law Office
• PA – Pennsylvania Bar Association Formal Op. 2010-200: Ethical Obligations on Maintaining a Virtual Office for the Practice of Law in Pennsylvania
• PA – Pennsylvania Bar Association Formal Op. 2020-300: Ethical Obligations for Lawyers Working Remotely
• PA – Pennsylvania Bar Association & Philadelphia Bar Association Joint Formal Op. 2021-100: Ethical Considerations for Lawyers Practicing Law from Physical Locations Where They Are Not Licensed
• UT – Utah Op. No. 19-03, Remote Work
• WA – Washington State Bar Association Advisory Op. 2016-01: Ethical Practices of the Virtual Law Office
• WI – Wisconsin State Bar Association Formal Ethics Op. EF-21-02: Working remotely

Credits:
Content Contributor: Melissa A Smart, Director of Education, ARDC
Video Presenter: Teresa McAdams, Managing Partner, McAdams & Sartori, LLC