Legal Ethics and Corporate Practice

14 Pages Posted: 10 Nov 2005

See all articles by Milton C. Regan, Jr.

Milton C. Regan, Jr.

Georgetown University Law Center

Jeffrey D. Bauman

Georgetown University Law Center

Date Written: November 2005

Abstract

Despite the fact that a substantial number of lawyers work in law firms and corporate legal departments representing business corporations, up to now there has been no major casebook that addresses the distinctive issues of ethics and judgment that such lawyers face. "Legal Ethics and Corporate Practice," by Georgetown Law professors Milton C. Regan, Jr. and Jeffrey Bauman addresses this need.

The numerous corporate scandals over the past few years underscore that corporate representation today is perhaps more complex, challenging, and socially important than ever before. Legal Ethics and Corporate Practice aims to enhance the ability of lawyers to operate effectively in this environment. First, the book is organized primarily around the kinds of work that corporate lawyers do rather than around traditional ethical concepts. Chapters deal with matters such as securities regulation and disclosure, negotiations, legal opinions, regulatory counseling and compliance, internal investigations, mergers and acquisitions, shareholder litigation, and many others. The book includes a chapter on the work of Enron's in-house and outside counsel as a vehicle for examining the kinds of questions that arise in legal work on complex transactions. Students thus learn how different types of tasks generate a range of issues that cut across ethical categories.

Second, the book exposes students to the latest thinking and research on the social-psychological dynamics of organizational settings, different theories of the lawyer's role, competing conceptions of corporate responsibility, the history and structure of corporate legal departments and large law firms, and different concepts of moral accountability. This material helps place corporate practice in a broader social, economic, and cultural context.

Finally, the book uses problems as the main focus of discussion and analysis as a way of prompting students to draw on the practical and conceptual material to which they have been exposed. This approach is designed to make students sensitive to the numerous ethical, legal, practical, and organizational factors that lawyers must take into account when engaged in creative problem-solving.

In addition to its obvious relevance for students who plan to spend time in law firms or business organizations, the book also can serve as an effective way for any law student to learn legal ethics. Appreciating the texture of daily law practice should make ethical concepts more vivid for students. Ideally, it will help them develop a more sophisticated capacity to identify and deliberate about ethical issues as they are likely to arise in concrete settings in perhaps the most common attorney-client relationship.

Suggested Citation

Regan, Milton C. and Bauman, Jeffrey D., Legal Ethics and Corporate Practice (November 2005). Georgetown Law and Economics Research Paper No. 843607, Georgetown Public Law Research Paper No. 843607, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=843607 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.843607

Milton C. Regan (Contact Author)

Georgetown University Law Center ( email )

600 New Jersey Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20001
United States
202-662-9414 (Phone)
202-662-9408 (Fax)

Jeffrey D. Bauman

Georgetown University Law Center ( email )

600 New Jersey Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20001
United States

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