Bar association hands down verdict on sharing leads

legalbooksLawyers beware: Some forms of networking could violate the ethical standard of the profession.

So says a recent legal opinion from the Virginia State Bar association that addressed lawyers’ participation in certain lead-sharing and networking groups.

“It’s one of those issues that been percolating for some time,” said Eric Perkins, who runs Perkins Law in Glen Allen.

“I think the opinion will make people think twice and will certainly give people pause,” said Perkins, who says he’s not a member of any networking groups.

The latest opinion, which can be found here, reaffirms an opinion the VSB made two years ago and specifically says it is unethical for a lawyer in Virginia to be in a networking group where membership is dependent on the number of leads a person passes on to fellow members.

“Where lawyers are required to pass referrals, that can put their judgment at risk,” said Mark Deutsch, executive director and CEO of BNI-Central Virginia, one of the larger networking and lead-sharing groups in town.

Deutsch said he has heard from many of his lawyer members since the recent opinion was issued. BNI doesn’t specifically require members to pass referrals, but members are encouraged to help fellow BNI members find new business.

Virginia is one of only a few states in which the bar association has made such a conclusion. The others are Maryland, Massachusetts, Arizona, New Hampshire, Oregon, New York and Montana.

As the VSB’s opinion states, participation in such a group “may create undisclosed conflicts of interest, compromise a lawyer’s professional independence and risk violation of solicitation rules.”

One of the main arguments against participation is that exchanging leads violates the prohibition against a lawyer giving anything of value to a person or organization for securing employment by a client.

Passing leads or referrals would be considered things of value.

The opinion also said that a lawyer who is beholden to an organization might feel obligated to accept a case he is not competent to handle because the referral came from someone in the networking group.

So what’s a lawyer to do? They, just like any other professionals, have to find ways to drum up business.

There are some lawyer-specific lead programs that are sanctioned by the VSB, including the Virginia Lawyer Referral Service. Through this program, lawyers pay an annual fee to be included in a system that the general public can search when in need of an attorney.

Michael Schwartz covers the legal industry for BizSense. Please send news tips to [email protected].

legalbooksLawyers beware: Some forms of networking could violate the ethical standard of the profession.

So says a recent legal opinion from the Virginia State Bar association that addressed lawyers’ participation in certain lead-sharing and networking groups.

“It’s one of those issues that been percolating for some time,” said Eric Perkins, who runs Perkins Law in Glen Allen.

“I think the opinion will make people think twice and will certainly give people pause,” said Perkins, who says he’s not a member of any networking groups.

The latest opinion, which can be found here, reaffirms an opinion the VSB made two years ago and specifically says it is unethical for a lawyer in Virginia to be in a networking group where membership is dependent on the number of leads a person passes on to fellow members.

“Where lawyers are required to pass referrals, that can put their judgment at risk,” said Mark Deutsch, executive director and CEO of BNI-Central Virginia, one of the larger networking and lead-sharing groups in town.

Deutsch said he has heard from many of his lawyer members since the recent opinion was issued. BNI doesn’t specifically require members to pass referrals, but members are encouraged to help fellow BNI members find new business.

Virginia is one of only a few states in which the bar association has made such a conclusion. The others are Maryland, Massachusetts, Arizona, New Hampshire, Oregon, New York and Montana.

As the VSB’s opinion states, participation in such a group “may create undisclosed conflicts of interest, compromise a lawyer’s professional independence and risk violation of solicitation rules.”

One of the main arguments against participation is that exchanging leads violates the prohibition against a lawyer giving anything of value to a person or organization for securing employment by a client.

Passing leads or referrals would be considered things of value.

The opinion also said that a lawyer who is beholden to an organization might feel obligated to accept a case he is not competent to handle because the referral came from someone in the networking group.

So what’s a lawyer to do? They, just like any other professionals, have to find ways to drum up business.

There are some lawyer-specific lead programs that are sanctioned by the VSB, including the Virginia Lawyer Referral Service. Through this program, lawyers pay an annual fee to be included in a system that the general public can search when in need of an attorney.

Michael Schwartz covers the legal industry for BizSense. Please send news tips to [email protected].

This story is for our paid subscribers only. Please become one of the thousands of BizSense Pro readers today!

Your subscription has expired. Renew now by choosing a subscription below!

For more informaiton, head over to your profile.

Profile


SUBSCRIBE NOW

 — 

 — 

 — 

TERMS OF SERVICE:

ALL MEMBERSHIPS RENEW AUTOMATICALLY. YOU WILL BE CHARGED FOR A 1 YEAR MEMBERSHIP RENEWAL AT THE RATE IN EFFECT AT THAT TIME UNLESS YOU CANCEL YOUR MEMBERSHIP BY LOGGING IN OR BY CONTACTING [email protected].

ALL CHARGES FOR MONTHLY OR ANNUAL MEMBERSHIPS ARE NONREFUNDABLE.

EACH MEMBERSHIP WILL ONLY FUNCTION ON UP TO 3 MACHINES. ACCOUNTS ABUSING THAT LIMIT WILL BE DISCONTINUED.

FOR ASSISTANCE WITH YOUR MEMBERSHIP PLEASE EMAIL [email protected]




Return to Homepage

POSTED IN Uncategorized

Editor's Picks

Subscribe
Notify of
guest

2 Comments
oldest
newest most voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
Mark Deutsch
Mark Deutsch
13 years ago

Michael/RBS – Thank you for covering this issue. Here are some additional notes that may be of interest to your attorney readers. First, one of the states mentioned as having made a similar conclusion as Virginia – New York – issued a letter specifically permitting membership in “BNI” by name, and an additional state, Washington, also stated that our policies & rules permit membership. Second, this issue is not really recent, but the original ethics opinion dated Feb. 2, 2009 was revised at the end of Dec., 2010 to add some language that we believe did not materially change the… Read more »

gplm2000
gplm2000
13 years ago

Malarkey! I have been in business networking groups, not as a lawyer, that required passing on two leads per meeting. The primary purpose is to make sure that everyone is participating and not just there to get leads. It is a fair requirement with no malicious intent. Actually it is not a particularly good forum for a lawyer looking for clients. The bar association is sticking it’s nose into something it knows nothing about. Maybe it would better spend it’s time looking at billing hours and plea bargaining away defendants rights to end a case.