Ethics in Negotiations
Every attorney negotiates on a regular basis – whether with a counter party in a transaction or with an adverse party in settlement negotiations in litigation. Unlike non-attorneys, however, their freedom to speak is limited. There are real limits on how far attorneys can go in puffing their case or their client’s position in negotiations. But the line is not bright; it is often blurry. There are also issues related to an attorney’s basic competence in negotiations and whether they can negotiate at all in jurisdictions in which they are not admitted to practice. This program will discuss these and many other ethical issues in transactional and litigation negotiations.
- Drawing the line between puffery and boast, on the one hand, and misrepresentation on the other
- Negotiating in a jurisdiction where you are not admitted to practice
- When you must correct someone else’s mistakes
- Communications with adverse parties
- Competency in negotiations
Thomas E. Spahn is a partner in the McLean, Virginia office of McGuireWoods, LLP, where he has a broad complex commercial, business and securities litigation practice. He also has a substantial practice advising businesses on properly creating and preserving the attorney-client privilege and work product protections. For more than 20 years he has lectured extensively on legal ethics and professionalism and has written “The Attorney-Client Privilege and the Work Product Doctrine: A Practitioner’s Guide,” a 750 page treatise published by the Virginia Law Foundation. Mr. Spahn has served as member of the ABA Standing Committee on Ethics and Professional Responsibility and as a member of the Virginia State Bar's Legal Ethics Committee. He received his B.A., magna cum laude, from Yale University and his J.D. from Yale Law School.
David Rabinowitz is a partner in the New York City office of Moses & Singer, LLP, where he is co-head of the firm’s litigation, employment and labor practices. He has more than 30 years experience as a litigator in commercial, copyright, trademark, employment, trust and estate, and real estate matters. He has spoken and written widely on ethical issues for attorneys across a wide range of practice areas. He has also served as an adjunct professor of law at Seton Hall Law School, teaching copyright law. He formerly served as a trustee of The Copyright Society of the USA. Mr. Rabinowitz received his B.S. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and his J.D. from Columbia University School of Law.
