{"id":7065,"date":"2009-09-13T23:12:40","date_gmt":"2009-09-14T04:12:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/law.marquette.edu\/facultyblog\/?p=7065"},"modified":"2009-09-14T09:00:15","modified_gmt":"2009-09-14T14:00:15","slug":"this-judge-suckslawyers-social-networking","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/law.marquette.edu\/facultyblog\/2009\/09\/this-judge-suckslawyers-social-networking\/","title":{"rendered":"Lawyers & Social Networking"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"computer_with_scales3\"An article in today\u2019s New York Times<\/em><\/a>\u00a0talks about what can happen when lawyers open up online.\u00a0 The article begins with the story of Sean Conway.\u00a0 Attorney Conway took to his blog to state exactly how angry he was with a Fort Lauderdale judge.\u00a0 He said she was an \u201cEvil, Unfair Witch.\u201d\u00a0 But because Conway is a lawyer, his online ranting resulted his being reprimanded and fined by the Florida bar.<\/p>\n

Of course, lawyers aren\u2019t the only ones whose livelihood is affected by their online postings.\u00a0 There\u2019s this<\/a>, and this<\/a>, and this<\/a>.\u00a0 Having one\u2019s online activity be the basis of dismissal has increased so much<\/a> that a new phrase \u2013 \u201cFacebook fired\u201d<\/a> \u2013 has entered our lexicon.\u00a0<\/p>\n

But being a lawyer means something more.\u00a0 Lawyers have long been held to a higher standard of conduct than other members of society.\u00a0 As the New York Times <\/em>article points out, your \u201cfreedom to gripe is limited by codes of conduct.\u201d\u00a0 Thus, criticizing the court or revealing client details online \u2013 even if the lawyer thinks she\u2019s veiled the true subject \u2013 can cause trouble for a lawyer because she runs the risk of violating rules of professional responsibility.<\/p>\n

Similarly, when a lawyer\u2019s online activity belies what he\u2019s told his superiors or the court, trouble can follow.\u00a0 According to the New York Times <\/em>article, a lawyer asked a judge for trial delay because there was a death in his family.\u00a0 The judge granted the delay, but noticed on the lawyer\u2019s Facebook page that while there was indeed a death in the family, there were also a number of posts by the lawyer about partying and motorbiking.\u00a0 When the lawyer asked for a second delay, the judge denied his request and notified his firm.\u00a0 Repercussions for such conduct may be not only the loss of one\u2019s job, as it might be for others in society, but also fines and discipline by the state\u2019s board of bar examiners or other office of lawyer regulation.\u00a0 In fact, some lawyer licensing organizations are considering or adopting policies<\/a> whereby they examine applicants\u2019 social networking sites as part of the licensing process.\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

This topic, which can be broadly categorized as the professionalism of the younger generation of lawyers, is a topic that is often talked about in the legal academy, particularly among those of us who teach legal skills.\u00a0 Our students are of a generation that has grown up with email and the Internet, with reality television shows, and a penchant for revealing to the public their personal lives and thoughts.\u00a0<\/p>\n

However, most practicing lawyers grew up in generations that emphasized a certain formality of one\u2019s conduct, and law has always been a more conservative profession than most.\u00a0 The influx of a younger, more open generation into the profession means that there will inevitably be a difference in how each defines what it means to be a professional.\u00a0 A younger lawyer would likely see nothing unprofessional with posting a rant about the partners at his firm, especially if he doesn\u2019t expressly name them (e.g., \u201cSuffered through a two-hour meeting today with the boring partner and the a-hole partner.\u201d), whereas an older lawyer, who may think the exact same thing, would find such a public disclosure wholly unprofessional.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u00a0There are, I believe, positive aspects of social networking.\u00a0 When life is so hectic, it\u2019s nice to quickly catch up with family and friends all over the country by checking status updates on Facebook.\u00a0 But not everything<\/em> that goes on with my family and friends is something that I want to know \u2013 or think I should know.\u00a0 There comes a point when what\u2019s posted is too much information (TMI).\u00a0 And most of the time, TMI often translates into \u201cunprofessional,\u201d especially if you\u2019re a lawyer or lawyer-to-be.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

An article in today\u2019s New York Times\u00a0talks about what can happen when lawyers open up online.\u00a0 The article begins with the story of Sean Conway.\u00a0 Attorney Conway took to his blog to state exactly how angry he was with a Fort Lauderdale judge.\u00a0 He said she was an \u201cEvil, Unfair Witch.\u201d\u00a0 But because Conway is 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