Ellen Brotman, Esq.

What can we do to protect the Rule of Law? First, we must be united…

We have a duty to our profession, our clients and the courts to ensure that…

Formal Opinion 512 does an excellent job of analyzing the rules that are implicated by…

The country’s faith in these institutions, including our elections and our civil and criminal justice…

At this time of year, I usually write a column with a list of New…

In the past, I have often described the Rules of Professional Conduct as the Emily…

Many solos and small firms charge their clients “nonrefundable” fees, intending to take an advance…

Over the past twenty years, government agencies andregulators have expanded their investigations of corporationsacross a…

There are 75,600 lawyers in Pennsylvania. Last year, 3,818 disciplinary complaints were opened, and 132…

It’s inevitable: the end of the year marks a time for reviewing your triumphs and…

On Oct. 24, House Resolution 231 narrowly passed out of the House Judiciary Committee by…

As part of a month-long campaign exploring lawyer well-being as misconduct prevention, the Disciplinary Board…

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court https://www.pacourts.us/courts/supreme-court has created a Judicial Ethics Advisory Board. https://www.pacourts.us/news-and-statistics/news/news-detail/1101/supreme-court-of-pennsylvania-announces-membership-of-new-judicial-ethics-advisory-board The Board…

On February 11, 2022, Attorney Elliott James Schuchardt was suspended for two years by order…

Last year, a Twitter thread addressed women and asked this question: How would your life…

Recently, the Disciplinary Board of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania appointed a new Board Chair…

By Ellen Brotman I often tell my attorney-clients to think of the Rules of Professional…

By Ellen Brotman It’s the season of gratitude and celebration, gratitude and celebration for getting…

By Ellen C. Brotman and Lynn Marietta Nichols The summer is ending, the birds are…

By Ellen Brotman and Lynn Marietta Nichols Decades ago when the Rules of Professional Conduct were…

In a recent DBD Opinion suspending a lawyer for one year and one day for…

I have been writing this professional conduct column for over 10 years, with and without co-authors,…

On March 16, as we were confronting the reality of a pandemic and its potentially…

On August 10th, 2020, the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania suspended Philadelphia attorney M.B. for one…

Blogs start with the best intentions but often move to the back burner and then…

The Disciplinary Board has issued protocols describing how it will conduct operations remotely in the…

On June 8, 2020, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court approved adoption of Rule 8.4(g) broadening the…

Three years ago, after over two decades of practicing in small firms, medium sized firms…

Very Big News from the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania was posted on the The Disciplinary Board of the…

For many of us, our practices take us into the lives of our clients at…

Sleepless nights are a criminal defense attorney’s lot in life, full of worry about all…

Attorneys experience problematic drinking, drug use and mental health distress at a higher rate than…

At least once or twice a day, after I press the “send” button, I get…

On Feb. 8, former Centre County District Attorney Stacy Parks Miller was suspended from the…

Let’s start here: the government begins a grand jury investigation of an organization, say a…

Conflicts and confidences are the ­ethical tripwires of our profession. What may seem like a…

As lawyers watching the spectacle of the investigations surrounding the Trump administration, we get to…

Despite appearances, it’s spring and Donald Trump and his attorney Michael Cohen have provided us…

If you are interested in ethics, white collar crime, and the way they overlap, Christmas…

On Oct. 21, there was a news report that President Donald Trump would be personally…