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Course Details

Course Information
  • smart_display Format

    Live Online with Live Q&A

  • signal_cellular_alt Difficulty Level

    Intermediate

  • work Practice Area

    Ethics

Date & Time
  • event Date

    Tuesday, July 22, 2025

  • schedule Time

    1:00 p.m. ET./10:00 a.m. PT

  • timer Program Length

    90 minutes

Credit Information

  • This 90-minute webinar is eligible in most states for 1.5 CLE credits.

  • An excellent opportunity to earn Ethics CLE credits. Note: BARBRI cannot guarantee that this course will be approved for ethics credits in all states. To confirm, please contact our CLE department at pdservice@barbri.com.

Early Bird Pricing!
MSRP
$197.00
$147.00
Save $50.00

Discount expires 7/4/25

This course is $0 with these passes:

CLE
ALL

This CLE webinar will discuss critical issues relating to legal ethics in negotiations for transactional and litigation attorneys. The panel will explore applicable rules and provide attorneys a deeper understanding of key ethical challenges in contract and settlement negotiations as well as provide practical tools for navigating these issues in their practice.

Faculty

Amy G. McClurg
Assistant Counsel
Thompson Hine

As a member of Thompson Hine’s Office of General Counsel, Ms. McClurg conducts research and advises the firm’s lawyers on a variety of substantive legal ethics, privilege and liability issues. She also reviews and analyzes business intake conflicts, outside counsel guidelines and ethical screens; advises the firm’s lawyers on bar admissions matters; and provides guidance on ethical and liability issues to administrative departments throughout the firm. In addition, Ms. McClurg has responsibility for co-editing Thompson Hine’s legal ethics blog, The Law for Lawyers Today, which has been named a top law blog by the ABA Journal.

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Description

The process of negotiating contracts and settlements is ripe with ethical issues and concerns. Attorneys engaging in these matters within their practice must consider issues pertaining to competence, confidentiality, conflicts of interest, truthfulness in negotiations, and more.

Attorneys engaged in contract and settlement negotiations, and the drafting of related documents, need to understand how to identify and manage ethical dilemmas, including issues related to privileged information, overreaching contract terms, and potential conflicts between clients.

Listen as our panel discusses applicable rules and provides attorneys a deeper understanding of key ethical challenges in contract and settlement negotiations as well as provides practical tools for navigating these issues in their practice.

Outline

I. Key Model Rules relevant to contract and settlement negotiation

A. Rule 1.1 Competence

B. Rule 1.6 Confidentiality of information

C. Rule 1.7 Conflict of interest

D. Rule 1.3 Diligence

E. Rule 2.1 Lawyer as advisor

F. Rule 4.1 Truthfulness in statements to others

G. Rule 8.1 catch-all provisions

II. Ethical challenges

A. Protecting client confidentiality and handling privileged information

B. Identifying and managing conflicts of interest in transactions

C. Avoiding false statements in contract and settlement negotiations

D. Avoiding overreaching and unconscionable terms

III. Hypothetical examples and best practices

Benefits

The panel will address these and other key considerations:

  • What are the guiding ethical principles in contract negotiations?
  • What are some of the most common ethical challenges encountered in drafting contracts?
  • What are the key ethical considerations in negotiating the settlement of claims?
  • What are some effective strategies for navigating the tension between zealous advocacy and adhering to ethical obligations in contract and settlement negotiations?