Ethics & Technology Resources

NEW! On November 16, 2023, the State Bar Board of Trustees approved the Practical Guidance for the Use of Generative Artificial Intelligence in the Practice of Law, developed by the Committee on Professional Responsibility and Conduct to assist lawyers in navigating their ethical obligations when using generative artificial intelligence. The Practical Guidance will be a living document that is periodically updated as the technology evolves and matures, and as new issues are presented.

This page list resources addressing attorney professional responsibility issues that arise in connection with the use of websites, email, chat rooms, and other technologies. The resources include advisory ethics opinions, articles, and MCLE programs.

The above links organize items by the type of resources. The links below organize the same collection of resources by subject matter.

The links below are to the Rules of Professional Conduct that account for lawyer use of technology.

  • Rule 1.1, Comment [1] - clarifies the duty of competence to include keeping abreast of technology in the practice of law (operative March 22, 2021)
  • Rule 1.4, Comment [2] - updates the duty to provide copies of significant documents to expressly permit provision by "electronic or other means"
  • Rule 1.16(e) - clarifies a lawyer's duty to release all client materials when terminating a representation to expressly include release of client materials created or held in "electronic or other form"
  • Rule 4.4 - requires a lawyer who receives inadvertently produced materials that obviously appear to be subject to the attorney-client privilege or confidential and privileged to  immediately notify the sender
  • Rule 7.2(a) - clarifies the advertising rules to provide that a lawyer may advertise through "electronic means of communication, including public media"
  • Rule 7.5, Comment - clarifies the scope of the rule governing a lawyer's professional designation to include logos and "URLs"