Conference Background and Agenda
THINKING ABOUT UNBUNDLED LAW
This section of the website is an informal
compilation of materials and links related to defining and exploring the
changing practice of law and the "unbundling" of legal services.
"Unbundled" legal services, which has been called "discrete task
representation" or "limited service", is a familiar part of most
law practices. What is unfamiliar for many practitioners is recognizing
"unbundling" as a distinct practice approach to be negotiated with a
knowledgeable client at the time of initial contact. We will be using this space
to offer a variety of ways in which to refine and develop the definition and
challenges of an "unbundled" practice. We welcome your contributions
and ideas. This section of the site will be updated periodically.
Ayn Crawley
Director - Maryland Legal Assistance Network
E-Mail: acrawley@mdjustice.org
Unbundled Legal
Services - An Alternative Way to Package and deliver Your
Product
Debbie Weecks, an attorney from Arizona, describes the why, the how and the outcome for attorneys considering the addition of unbundled legal services to their repertoire. The piece also examines ethical issues and the author's process of amending the Arizona Rules.
The interrelation between the increase in pro se litigants and the rise in the provision of unbundled legal services to support them is examined in this article from the August 2002 issue of the ABA Journal.
Increasingly, members of the general public (including many older Americans) are handling some of their own legal matters as well as picking and choosing among legal tasks to determine when a lawyer is needed to resolve everyday legal problems. The public is faced with new choices for "unbundled" legal services and legal help on the web--from case bidding to online document assembly and flat fee telephone advice. In this article, Richard S. Granat, President, MyLawyer.com, Inc. explains some of the issues and risks involved in practice in cyberspace.
"Limiting the Scope of Your Representation" part 1, part 2
Barrie Althoff, Chief Disciplinary Counsel Washington State Bar Association (1997) wrote two articles discussing some ethical and practical considerations involved in providing your client with only a limited legal representation. She explains how the "unbundling" of legal services from the traditional full "bundle" of legal services is ethically permissible, and described some reasons you may want, or be required, to limit your representation and some of the risks associated with limited representation.
Document Assembly and Unbundled Legal Services
One area in which experimentation is beginning to take place is the support of assisted pro se projects in legal aid programs through document assembly programs. Maryland and other states have projects underway.
"Seize the Future"
A November 1999 "Seize the Future" conference, cosponsored by the ABA Law Practice Management Section and Lotus, was dedicated to "forecasting and influencing the future of the legal profession". The section's website provides a provocative look at the issues raised in considering the profession's evolution. In addition, you may be interested in comments and reflections by James L. Thompson on the conference and its implication for the organized bar as well as individual practitioners. Mr. Thompson is the most recent past president of the Maryland State Bar Association.
Bibliography of Materials
Forrest Mosten has compiled a bibliography of articles, books, reports and multi-media materials on a broad range of unbundling issues.
Thinking about the Ethical Issues
In preparation for the conference, the Maryland Legal Assistance Network (MLAN) Project conducted an informal national survey of ethical opinions on issues related to "unbundled" legal services a/k/a discrete task lawyering. It offers an overview of the approaches taken by different jurisdictions in facilitating or raising concerns about discrete task representation.
Ethics 2000: Revision of the Model Rules - As some have observed, the current rules, when drafted, did not envision the strong movement toward limited legal assistance that the profession is experiencing. The ABA Center for Professional Responsibility has sponsored a Commission on the Evaluation of the Rules of Professional Conduct, or "Ethics 2000," which offers full and current drafts, minutes and testimony. The drafts of proposed rules, on the other hand, reflect (in part) an attempt to provide clarifying standards to lawyers who are providing, or would like to provide, limited legal assistance.