Assignment 1 (1 page) answer the questions. Cite a reference
Competent Represen
Assignment 1 (1 page) answer the questions. Cite a reference
Competent Representation
During lunch, your friend Alexis asks you for advice. Alexis is also a paralegal who has been working as a paralegal for three years for the same firm. The firm is a small general practice law office that represents clients in a number of areas, including real estate. Alexis is working with an attorney on a complicated real property transaction, and the land description for the property is complex. The attorney remarks to Alexis that he is not very good at drafting land descriptions. Knowing that Alexis received formal paralegal training, he assumed she would be skilled in this area and requested Alexis complete the land description. The attorney does not know that Alexis also has difficulty preparing land descriptions. Alexis knows that if she prepares the legal description, even though her supervising attorney will review it, it is questionable whether the attorney will be knowledgeable enough to catch any mistakes.
Alexis asks for your advice:
1.Should she draft the land description? Why or why not?
2.Has the supervising attorney committed any ethical violations? If so, how?
3 What if Alexis decides to draft the land description?
What would you do differently if you were Alexis?
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Assignment 2 ( 1/4 page) ask one question to yohana cite one reference.
Yohana Guild posted Jan 23, 2025 1:03 AM
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Unit 4 Discussion: Competent representation
In this scenario, the attorney is asking Alexis to help him draft land descriptions because he is not confident that he has the skills to complete the document himself. A land description is a legal description of the precise location and measurement of real property (What Is a Legal Description in Real Estate? – Blueprint Title, n.d.).
Q1. I do not think that it will be a good idea to help the attorney with this request because if she were to help him with this task, the attorney would have to make sure that the paper is drafted properly, but he cannot do this if he does not have a clue what a document like this one requires.
Q2. According to the ABA model, rule 1.3 regarding due diligence states that an attorney should do their best when working in any case assigned to them, no matter the personal inconvenience this might cause them. In this case, if the attorney does not think he has the necessary skills to get this type of work done because he does not feel confident enough to, then he can start by doing more research on this matter or go with other attorneys who might be experts in this field to help him get the job done.
Q3. If I were Alexis, I would have politely told the attorney that I could not draft this document for him because it was not in my scope of practice and that if I made a mistake and something went wrong, that act could negatively impact on him and the firm’s reputation. Instead, I would inform him that I could get him in contact with another attorney who had been drafting land descriptions for a long time so he could help him. That way, he could get the help he needed and do this work alone.
References
Rule 1.3 Diligence – Comment. (n.d.). American Bar Association. Retrieved January 22, 2025, from https://www.americanbar.org/groups/professional_responsibility/publications/model_rules_of_professional_conduct/rule_1_3_diligence/comment_on_rule_1_3/
What is a Legal Description in Real Estate? – Blueprint Title. (n.d.). Blueprint Title. Retrieved January 22, 2025, from https://blueprinttitle.com/what-is-a-legal-description-in-real-estate/
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Assignment 3 (1/4 page ) ask question to jessica cite one reference
Jessica posted Jan 25, 2025 2:25 AM
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1. Should she draft the land description? Why or why not?
According to ABA Module Rule 1.1 Competence of legal knowledge and skill, in determining whether a lawyer employs the requisite knowledge and skill in a particular matter, relevant factors include the relative complexity and specialized nature of the matter, the lawyer’s experience, the lawyer’s training and experience in the field of question, the preparation and study the lawyer can give the matter and whether it is feasible to refer the matter to, or associate or consult with, a lawyer of established competence in the field in question. For instance, the required proficiency is that of a general practitioner. Expertise in a particular field of law may be required in certain circumstances. [2] A lawyer does not necessarily need special training or prior experience to manage legal problems with which the lawyer is unfamiliar.
The attorney lacked experience with drafting a land description; therefore, he asked his paralegal Alexis to complete the draft for him. He did not know that she was not exceptionally good at drafting them either. With, Alexis should be under the supervision of an attorney while they taught and guided her how to draft one; therefore, working together to get the task done. As the supervising attorney working along beside with the paralegal, he shows professional ethical rules of conduct. If the attorney lacked the knowledge and experience of this then he could do more research and studies on the field of the topic to learn how or with consent from the client, he could have hired a different attorney whose expertise was in that field of law to work with him and his paralegal both to teach them how to get one made. At least then, they both would know that working together on this with a more experienced attorney, they would not have to worry about something going wrong on their end of the drafting.
2. Has the supervising attorney committed any ethical violations? If so, how? What if Alexis decides to draft the land description?
The supervising attorney has violated ethical violations as far as this goes due to having the paralegal draft the land description herself without a supervising attorney present to go over the draft. Allowing the paralegal to complete research and gather information for the attorney’s case, however, not draft the whole document by herself without the attorney looking it over first. However, the attorney lacks the experience himself so then that would be breaking the ethical rules of professional conduct toward their client due to the lack of experience. According to Rule 1.1 states “[a] lawyer shall provide competent representation to a client. Meaning giving his knowledge in such matter, skill, thoroughness, and preparation necessary for the representation. The attorney and the paralegal both lack the competence in this field of study drafting a land description. If Alexis decides to draft the land description then most a chance it is not going to be correctly drafted for their client and that cause ethical issues with the responsible attorney, as long as he goes along with the draft the paralegal creates they both would be breaking the ethical rules because they both lack the knowledge and expertise to the draft. The paralegal will be accountable just as much as the attorney is because they both violated the Rules.
3. What would you do differently if you were Alexis?
If I were Alexis, I would be straight-up honest with my supervising attorney and inform them that I lacked the knowledge of drafting a land description and that we could either work on this together or if the attorney lacked the competence to do so then we would possibly need to refer the case to another attorney who does have the expertise and knowledge in drafting land descriptions. I would not draft the document since I lacked knowledge and would not want to violate the ethical rules of law and be just as guilty as the supervising attorney. Therefore, I would hand the case over to another attorney.
Reference
Writing a legal description as a professional land surveyor (including a checklist).Land
SurveyorsUnite Surveying Education Com. (2023, December 22).
https://landsurveyorsunited.com/articles/writing-a-legal-description-professional-land-
Model rules of professional conduct.(n.d.-d). https://www.americanbar.org/groups/professional_
responsibility/publications model_rules_of_professional_conduct/
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Assignment 4 ask a question to Mel cite one reference
Mel posted Jan 23, 2025 12:10 PM
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There are two rules from the American Bar Association’s (ABA) Model Rules of Professional Conduct that apply to this scenario, rules 5.3 and 1.1.
Rule 5.3 addresses the responsibilities lawyers have over the nonlawyers they’re working with (American Bar Association [ABA], 2024b); here is the language relevant to this specific scenario:
With respect to a nonlawyer employed or retained by or associated with a lawyer:
[…]
(b) a lawyer having direct supervisory authority over the nonlawyer shall make reasonable efforts to ensure that the person’s conduct is compatible with the professional obligations of the lawyer; and
(c) a lawyer shall be responsible for conduct of such a person that would be a violation of the Rules of Professional Conduct if engaged in by a lawyer if:
(1) the lawyer orders or, with the knowledge of the specific conduct, ratifies the conduct involved; or
(2) the lawyer is a partner or has comparable managerial authority in the law firm in which the person is employed, or has direct supervisory authority over the person, and knows of the conduct at a time when its consequences can be avoided or mitigated but fails to take reasonable remedial action. (ABA, 2024b)
This rule means that anyone working for a lawyer is held to the same ethical standards as the lawyer. Furthermore, if a nonlawyer violates the ethical standards, their supervising lawyer is responsible, especially if the lawyer has knowledge of or encourages the conduct.
Rule 1.1 states “[a] lawyer shall provide competent representation to a client. Competent representation requires the legal knowledge, skill, thoroughness and preparation reasonably necessary for the representation.” (ABA, 2024a); this means that a lawyer must be able to comprehend and properly execute the work for their client. Combining this with rule 5.3, a nonlawyer working with a lawyer is also required to perform competently. So…
Should Alexis Draft the Land Description?
I don’t think Alexis should draft the land description. Rule 1.1 of the ABA’s Model Rules of Professional Conduct requires a lawyer to perform their work with “the legal knowledge, skill, thoroughness and preparation reasonably necessary for the representation.” (ABA, 2024a) and Alexis does not meet those requirements to properly draft a land description. She could do the necessary study and research to become competent in drafting land descriptions but, even then, she shouldn’t because she runs into another problem.
The Ethical Violations
If she decides to draft the land description, whether she researched it or not, she and her supervising attorney will still be violating rule 1.1 of the model rules of professional conduct. Why? Because her supervising attorney is responsible for approving and supervising her work, checking for competency, as required by rule 5.3; however, because the lawyer is not competent in drafting land descriptions themselves, how can they know that Alexis’s work meets a competent standard for their client? The lawyer is violating both rule 1.1 and rule 5.3 by asking Alexis to draft a land description; furthermore, it does not matter if they know Alexis is competent in that field or not because they are not competent in that field enough to check.
Avoiding the Ethical Violations
If I were Alexis, I would tell my supervising attorney that I am also not competent in drafting land descriptions and that they should consult with another lawyer, not a paralegal or nonlawyer, who is competent. Or I would offer to help them research the proper way to draft a land description, maybe provide them with an educational memo, and then, after feeling that we both have the required knowledge, I would draft the land description under their supervision. However, we may not have time for that so I may hint that they should drop the representation of the client and refer them to a better qualified lawyer. I would also remind them of rules 1.1 and 5.3 of the ABA’s Model Rules of Professional Conduct to prevent them from making this mistake in the future.
References
American Bar Association. (2024). Rule 1.1: Competence. AmericanBar.org. Retrieved January 23, 2025, from https://www.americanbar.org/groups/professional_responsibility/publications/model_rules_of_professional_conduct/rule_1_1_competence/
American Bar Association. (2024). Rule 5.3: Responsibilities regarding nonlawyer assistance. AmericanBar.org. Retrieved January 23, 2025 from https://www.americanbar.org/groups/professional_responsibility/publications/model_rules_of_professional_conduct/rule_5_3_responsibilities_regarding_nonlawyer_assistant/
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Assignment 5 (1/4 page) ask a question to Trinity . Site one reference
Trinity posted Jan 23, 2025 11:22 PM
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A legal description is a written statement that defines the boundaries of a property. I don’t think Alexis should draft up the land description because she has a difficult time drafting up land descriptions. Snice her supervising attorney not very good at drafting a land description how will the attorney know if the paralegal made any mistakes in the draft.
Rule 1.1 states a lawyer shall provide competent representation to a client. Competent representation requires the legal knowledge, skill, thoroughness and preparation reasonably necessary for the representation. Alexis would be violation of rule 1.1 due to her having a responsibility to provide competent representation. Since she has a difficult time with drafting a land description and if she was to draft it up, she would be violating rule 1.1.
If I were Alexis, I would let my supervising attorney that I’m not comfortable with drafting up a land description due to it being difficult to me. I would see if it’s possible if my supervising attorney will be willing to work on it together, or if I can get help from another attorney on what is needed in a land description.
American Bar Association. (2024). Rule 1.1: Competence. AmericanBar.org. Retrieved January 23, 2025, from
Rule 1.1: Competence