NCJ Number
118737
Journal
Trial Volume: 25 Issue: 7 Dated: (July 1989) Pages: 20-24
Date Published
1989
Length
5 pages
Annotation
Legal ethics have undergone remarkable developments in the past 25 years.
Abstract
They include two major revisions of the basic substantive rules of ethics; the institutional structures of the agencies that enforce ethical rules have been overhauled in most jurisdictions and are far more effective; admission to the profession has required a greater emphasis on ethics; there has been considerable scholarly analysis of ethical principles; and, of course, there have been many decisional law and ethics opinions at the national, State, and local level interpreting rules of ethics. Some changes anticipated in the next 25 years are: (1) reexamining the ethical standards; (2) reevaluating the enforcement of ethical standards in certain jurisdictions; and (3) public demand of a greater role in governing the legal profession, at least in ethical matters. It seems likely that legal ethics will continue to occupy a central role in the activities of the organized bar for some time to come.