This course will explore the ethical considerations that arise when civil rights practitioners team up with non-profits and community organizations.

Each entity brings something to the table. Community based organizations play important roles in grassroots outreach and education about legal rights, and in organizing community responses to unlawful practices; non-profit legal offices often identify emerging trends by bridging the divide between various legal disciplines, and they conduct synergistic policy campaigns; and private attorneys can work via fee-shifting statutes and pro bono cases to bring civil rights cases that might otherwise go unheard. When all are working collaboratively, they can leverage each others' efficacy and enhance the power of the communities they serve. But, ethical issues will arise. The devil is in the details and ethical issues crop up with retainers, plaintiff searches, fee agreements, privilege, confidentiality agreements, avoiding the unlicensed practice of law, and more.

We will engage in a moderated - yet lively - discussion between practitioners from non-profits and firms, organized around three hypothetical types of collaborations - to explore the ethical issues that can arise, and to develop shared expectations about how to work through them.

Presenters: Elizabeth Howell, Esq., Center for Appellate Litigation
Amanda Masters, Esq., Giskan Solotaroff Anderson & Stewart LLP

TO REGISTER: Send an email to amanda@nycpr.net. Please include name, workplace, phone number, and preferred email address.