LEGAL ETHICS IN THE EMPLOYMENT LAW CONTEXT: WHO IS THE CLIENT?

Abstract

The question is: Who is the client? Many ethical decisions attorneys must make emanate from this basic question. Thus, for those employment lawyers who represent, interact with, or sue unions or corporations, it is important to understand who the client is for different purposes such as representation, the attorney-client privilege, and ex parte communications. Because Kentucky recently adopted new rules of professional conduct, this paper uses Kentucky law as a microcosm through which to think about this larger question. Kentucky’s prior rules were based on the prior version of the ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct, still at least partially in effect in approximately twenty-two states. The current Kentucky rules mirror, almost identically in pertinent parts, the current model ABA rules known as Ethics 2000, on which approximately eighteen other states model the pertinent rules. This Article analyzes the recent change in Kentucky to permits scholars and attorneys in other states to benefit from the insights about Kentucky law.