NCJ Number
102604
Editor(s)
J M Burkoff
Date Published
1986
Length
730 pages
Annotation
This manual details the mandates of codes and courts regarding the ethical responsibilities and legal duties of criminal defense counsel.
Abstract
After reviewing ethical codes and professional disciplinary proceedings for attorneys, the manual reviews issues pertaining to the ineffective assistance of defense counsel, including conflicts of interest and representation at trial and on appeal. Other general topics considered are defense malpractice and competency; accepting, declining, and withdrawing from representation; the scope of representation; simultaneous and successive conflicts of interest; improper contacts; trial publicity and other public statements; and the attorney's fee. Other discussions focus on professional restrictions and obligations. Some of the ethical and legal issues derived from recent court decisions, new statutes, and new ethical rules include what a defense attorney must do when a client plans to commit perjury, when or if a defense counsel's legal fees may be forfeited to the government as traceable to a client's racketeering activities, and when defense counsel may be compelled by the prosecution to testify about a client's payment of legal fees or the client's whereabouts. Appended American Bar Association model code and model rules of professional responsibility and conduct as well as defense function standards and the American Trial Lawyer's Association model rules of professional conduct. Tables of ethical code citations and cases and subject index.