The Importance Of The Internet In Offshoring Of Legal Processing 1

The Importance Of The Internet In Offshoring Of Legal Processing

By LPO Carmona Founder, Jennifer Trinidad

February 7, 2014

This author contends that a lawyer cannot meet his or her ethical outsourcing obligations[1] without Internet delivery.[2]  The Internet allows a lawyer to supervise persons or entities in other countries by the minute, hour, day, week or month. Further, the lawyer can determine the levels of access the persons or entities have the law firm services. Also, the Internet permits third parties in other countries to communicate by fax, mail, e-mail, video and phone for the lawyer.  Finally, the Internet empowers the lawyer to offshore legal work while maintaining client confidentiality, avoiding conflicts of interest and charging reasonable fees.

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[1] See ABA Committee on Ethics and Professional Responsibility Formal Opinion 08-451 (2008); Ethics of Legal Outsourcing White Paper By Mark Ross, Published on February 14, 2010; The Ethics Of Legal Outsourcing, Steven C. Bennett; San Diego County Bar Association, Ethics Opinion 2007-1; Supreme Court of Ohio, Board Of Commissioners On Grievances And Discipline; North Carolina, 2007 Formal Ethics Opinion 12; Informational Packet Outsourcing Paralegal Work, The Florida Bar Ethics Department; The Association Of The Bar Of The City Of New York Committee On Professional And Judicial Ethics Formal Opinion 2006-3; American Bar Association Model Rules Of Professional Conduct http://www.abanet.org/cpr/mrpc/mrpc_toc.html; American Bar Association Model Rules of Professional Conduct http://www.abanet.org/cpr/mrpc/mrpc_toc.html; Pollak, Darya. "I'm Calling My Lawyer...in India!: Ethical Issues in International Legal Outsourcing." UCLA Journal of International Law and Foreign Affairs 11 UCLA J. Int'l L. & Foreign Aff.99 (2006); Offshore Legal Outsourcing: the Ethical Implications. (Mark Ross MCLE Course handout) Glendale, CA: LawScribe, Inc, 2007; ABA Formal Opinion 00-420 Surcharge to Client for Use of a Contract Lawyer http://www.abanet.org/cpr/pubs/issue_index.html; Rules 1-4, Solicitors' Code of Conduct 2007.

[2] For a detailed discussion of Internet delivery and outsourcing see The Handbook of Global Outsourcing and Offshoring [Kindle Edition], Ilan Oshri (Author), Julia Kotlarsky (Author), Willcocks (Author)