28.  Dan is a disbarred attorney who starts a service assist…

28.  Dan is a disbarred attorney who starts a service assisting bankruptcy clients in selecting and filling out bankruptcy forms with the court. Each client signs a disclaimer acknowledging that “This office is a document preparation and typing service only.” A licensed attorney’s office is in the same office suite as Dan’s office. The licensed attorney pays Dan a referral fee of 10% of the fees collected from each client that Dan refers to the attorney’s office.  Is the licensed attorney’s conduct proper?

12. Lawyer assigned paralegal Pat to search through the mass…

12. Lawyer assigned paralegal Pat to search through the massive business files of Lawyer’s client to find documents responsive to a federal court order for production of documents. After several months of work, Pat ended up with 170 large boxes full of documents that were responsive to the court order. Most of the documents were harmless, but a few were quite damaging to the legal position taken by Lawyer’s client. Instead of arranging the documents in the same logical order in which she found them in the client’s files, Pat intentionally jumbled the order of the documents. Her purpose was to make it exceedingly difficult, if not impossible, for the adversary to find the damaging documents and to understand their significance. Before the documents were produced for the adversary, Pat told Lawyer what she had done. Lawyer responded: “Good—that ought to slow them down. In the future, however, don’t do anything like that without checking with me first; we might get in trouble otherwise.” Which of the following statements are correct?I. Since document production requires the skill and judgment of a lawyer, Lawyer is subject to discipline for delegating the task to Pat, even if he had adequately supervised her work. II. Lawyer’s conduct was proper since he admonished Pat and instructed her not to engage in similar conduct in the future. III. Assuming that all responsive documents were produced, Lawyer’s conduct was proper, since the adversary has no right to insist that the documents be arranged in any particular order. IV. Even if all responsive documents were produced, Lawyer is subject to discipline because he failed to take steps to mitigate the consequences of Pat’s misconduct.

9.Stefanie is represented by Jamie Lawyer in her divorce aga…

9.Stefanie is represented by Jamie Lawyer in her divorce against Robert.  Stefanie asks Jamie how the divorce will impact the $1,000,000 in bonds that she received from her Bat Mitzvah.  The information regarding Stefanie’s Bat Mitzvah bonds is protected under which of the following:  I. Attorney-Client Privilege  II. Duty To Maintain Client Confidences  III. Attorney Work Product

16.  Attorney Able, a personal injury attorney with no exper…

16.  Attorney Able, a personal injury attorney with no experience in commercial matters, makes an oral agreement with Carl Client to prepare a complicated contract for a fee of $500 per hour.  The customary fee for similar work by local lawyers experienced in commercial matters is $350.  Attorney Able spends four hours on the contract, but sends an invoice for $2,500. Which of the following subjects Attorney Able to discipline?  I. He failed to reduce the fee arrangement to writing. II. His fee is greater than the customary local hourly fee for more experienced lawyers. III. His invoice exceeded the fee agreed upon. IV. As a lawyer inexperienced in commercial matters, he should have agreed to a fee of less than $350 per hour.

32. Essay 2 (1/3 of Exam Grade) – Answer according to both t…

32. Essay 2 (1/3 of Exam Grade) – Answer according to both the American Bar Association Model Rules of Professional Conduct and California authorities Pete is a partner at Law Firm, a firm with multiple offices across the United States.  One of Law Firm’s clients is Running Desk Corp., a company that manufactures office desks with a built-in treadmill for people who desire a more active and healthy lifestyle.  Law Firm reviews Running Desk Corp.’s purchase orders and agreements with component manufacturers.  Pete purchased one of these treadmill desks for his office.  One day, while running on his treadmill, Pete fell when he tried to take a closer look at his computer monitor on the desk component.  As a result of the fall, Pete sustained severe orthopedic injuries. Hank, a partner in Law Firm’s east coast office, has been asked to represent Running Desk Corp. in a lawsuit filed by attorney Abe.  Abe has filed a class action on behalf of all people who sustained orthopedic injuries after purchasing Running Desk Corp.’s treadmill desk.  Hank files an answer to the complaint before running the request through Law Firm’s conflicts manager.  Class action notices were sent to all potential class members, but Pete has not responded whether he will join the class yet.  Abe also represents Cam as a plaintiff in a case arising out of an automobile accident, where Cam sustained severe injuries which required amputation of both legs above the knee, and both arms right below the elbow.  The defendant in Cam’s case made an offer to settle in the amount of $100,000.  Since the class action against Running Desk Corp. will be expensive to litigate, Cam accepts the offer to settle.  Abe then calls Cam to tell him that his case resolved and to sign the settlement agreement. Please discuss whether Pete, Hank, and/or Abe would be subject to discipline. 

Question Nos. 19 and 20 are based on the following facts: He…

Question Nos. 19 and 20 are based on the following facts: Helen has been practicing law for two years.  Helen represents Pat in her first medical malpractice case against Dr. Euphoria.  She spends almost no time preparing the case, and her research and trial work fall far below the standard of care for lawyers in her area.  The jury finds against Pat, i.e., defense verdict in favor of Dr. Euphoria.  Pat subsequently files a complaint against Helen with the State Bar, and also sues Helen for legal malpractice. 20. In Pat’s legal malpractice suit against Helen, Helen refuses to answer questions about confidential communications with Pat during the suit against Dr. Euphoria.  Helen’s refusal is:  

8.  A recent law school graduate, Billy, who passed the bar,…

8.  A recent law school graduate, Billy, who passed the bar, sets up his own solo practice.  Billy hopes to develop a successful practice, but until the first settlement checks start coming in, he works as a bartender five nights a week.  Sometimes patrons at the bar that he works at are quite drunk, so he charges additional drinks (which were not ordered by the patron) to the tab – resulting in a substantially higher tip for Billy.  Is Billy subject to discipline by the bar?

PART II: ESSAYS (TWO HOURS)31. Essay 1 (1/3 of Exam Grade) –…

PART II: ESSAYS (TWO HOURS)31. Essay 1 (1/3 of Exam Grade) – Answer according to both the American Bar Association Model Rules of Professional Conduct and California authorities Paul is a general practitioner with his own law firm.  Paul has been very busy, so he decides to hire an associate, Al, a former deputy district attorney.  One of Paul’s clients is Cal.  Cal is charged with the brutal murder of the city’s mayor (an apparently violent death as a result of blunt force trauma to the head), but police have never been able to find the murder weapon.  Prior to trial, Paul met with Cal in jail.  Cal told Paul the following: “If somebody was to take a stroll in the City Park, and then go behind the women’s public restroom, that person may be able to find a baseball bat.”  On his way home from the jail, Paul stops by the City Park.  He proceeded to walk toward the back of the women’s public restroom, where he found a baseball bat buried under a pile of leaves.  There were some red stains on the baseball bat.  Paul saw a group of children playing in the nearby baseball field, so cleaned the baseball bat and gave it to one of the kids.   While Paul was handling Cal’s murder trial, he assigned all of the civil litigation cases in his office (one hundred total) to Al.  Due to the volume of the civil litigation cases, Al fails to file an answer to a complaint on time, and default judgment is entered against Paul’s client.  Since Al was inundated with all of the civil litigation cases, he [Al] forgot to tell Paul that he was the lead deputy district attorney assigned to the murder investigation of the mayor prior to joining Paul’s law firm.  At the conclusion of Cal’s murder trial, Paul tells the jury in his closing statement that they must acquit Cal of the murder charges because the prosecution has not proven that Cal murdered the mayor, and that the prosecution could not even produce the purported murder weapon.     Are Paul and/or Al subject to discipline?  Discuss.

5. A client hired a lawyer to do the legal work in connectio…

5. A client hired a lawyer to do the legal work in connection with a trusts and estate matter.  The lawyer agreed to do the work for a set hourly fee.  The lawyer did a great deal of legal research, prepared numerous memoranda of fact and law, and drafted most of the documents needed for setting up a trust.  At that point, the client became angry with the lawyer for no apparent reason and fired him.  The client paid the lawyer at the agreed upon rate for the work the lawyer had done and demanded that the lawyer turn over to him the papers that the lawyer had prepared, including the memoranda of fact and law and the document drafts. What papers must the lawyer turn over to the client?

10. Shaili is a young and busy litigator.  She has three upc…

10. Shaili is a young and busy litigator.  She has three upcoming trials, and a number of other cases which involve a lot of discovery, including, depositions, written discovery, and review of records obtained through subpoenas.  For the past 2 years, she has only been able to perform 6 hours of pro bono work.  Shaili is: