Yelp, I've Fallen for Social Media and I Can't LinkedOut: The Ethical Pitfalls of Social Media
Presented by: Legal Humorist Sean Carter

Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and the other social media tools have become ubiquitous in our high-tech society. And while social media can undoubtedly help lawyers to enhance their networks of colleagues, clients and prospective clients, it can also ensnare the unwary in a web of ethical violations.

Yakety Yak! Do Call Back!: The Ethical Need for Prompt Client Communication
Presented by: Legal Humorist Sean Carter

While it is important to comply with every obligation of the ethics canon, the obligation to promptly communicate with the client may be the most important. Lawyers who flaunt this rule leave their clients with no choice but to contact the state bar in a desperate attempt to seek answers to their questions. And, of course, by that point, the disciplinary authorities will have a long list of questions of their own.

In this insightful webinar, legal humorist Sean Carter will provide lawyers with practical tips for how to meet the increasingly difficult of burden of talking, emailing and texting to each client's content.

Attorneys Are Not Accomplices: How to Avoid Crossing the Line from Counselor to Co-Conspirator
Presented by: Legal Humorist Sean Carter

In their efforts to provide the best possible service to their clients, lawyers sometimes forget that they owe an even greater duty of fidelity to the law and the proper administration of justice. As a result, lawyers who “pull out all the stops” for a client run the risk of putting a stop to their law careers and even their very freedom.

You're a Lawyer Not a Fighter: The Ethical Imperative to Remain Peaceful at All Times
Presented by: Legal Humorist Sean Carter

Lawyers serve a vital role in society -- to help others resolve their disputes peacefully. And while lawyers do so through use of the adversarial process, we must not ever lose sight of the fact that we are not "fighting" for our clients. We are striving to help them reach a peaceful solution to their problem.

Sadly, quite often, lawyers get so hung up in the confrontational manner of depositions, cross-examinations, contract negotiations, and the like, that we develop a "fighting" mentality. This mentality does not serve the best of interest of our clients and nor does it serve our personal or professional interests.

I Think, Therefore I Am ... Biased: How Implicit Biases Manifest in the Legal Profession
Presented by: Legal Humorist Sean Carter

The human brain is wired to recognize patterns and make generalizations, even those based on faulty or incomplete information. And contrary to popular opinion, lawyers are human as well and therefore, we are just as susceptible to forming biases and acting upon them. And it does not require that we harbor ill will or animus towards other people. In fact, most often, our biases are not even our own, but rather those that have been taught to us.

In this eye-opening presentation, the presenter will use videos to show lawyers just how easy it is to form these biases, how they manifest themselves in the way we treat clients, colleagues and opposing parties, and most importantly, how we can reduce the effect of these biases by recognizing and compensating for them.

Caution: Keep Hands Off!
Presented by: Legal Humorist Sean Carter

It's been said that the entire legal ethics canon can be summed up in two rules: (1) Keep your hands off the money; and (2) Keep your hands off the client. And while this is a gross oversimplification of the legal ethics rules, it is true that these two breaches of fiduciary trust are among the gravest transgressions that a lawyer can make. Moreover, as they are often amongst the most heavily-punished violations, they often start a cascading effect of rule-breaking as lawyers desperately attempt to avoid their detection. As a result, it never hurts to review these all-important ethical limitations on lawyer conduct.

Boston (Il)legal: From the Don't Try This At Home Series
Presented by: Legal Humorist Sean Carter

Lawyers on our favorite TV legal dramas often act in ways that would cause significant trouble for actual lawyers. In this multimedia webinar, legal humorist Sean Carter will use short video clips from the very popular series, Boston Legal, to demonstrate some of the legal ethics violations that played out on the show. In doing so, Carter hopes to show you how to keep your professional life from imitating art.

Technical Fouls: Even Minor Ethics Violations Can Have Major Consequences
Presented by: Legal Humorist Sean Carter

When it comes to ethics violations, there is no such thing as a minor or "technical" foul. All ethics violations are serious matters, evidencing a breach of the trust that has been placed in the lawyer. As a result, lawyers must avoid falling into the mindset that a particular violation is "no big deal."

To make this case, noted legal humorist Sean Carter will chronicle a number of recent ethics cases in which lawyers were surprised to discover that even minor ethics violations can have major consequences.

Ally McSteal: From the Don't Try This at Home Series
Presented by: Legal Humorist Sean Carter

Lawyers on our favorite TV legal dramas often act in ways that would cause significant trouble for actual lawyers. In this multimedia webinar, legal humorist Sean Carter will use short video clips from the very popular series, Ally McBeal, to demonstrate some of the legal ethics violations that played out on the show. In doing so, Carter hopes to show you how to keep your professional life from imitating art.

CLE Gameshow Three-Pack #2201
Presented by: Legal Humorist Sean Carter

Join Sean Carter, America's Funniest Lawyer, for three (3) fun-filled CLE hours of legal ethics-related game shows, as follows:

TimeProgram
5:30-6:30pm ETWho Wants To Be Disbarred?
6:45-7:45pm ETWeakest Link
8:00-9:00pm ETDiscipline or No Discipline

Who Wants to be Disbarred?: A CLE Game Show
Presented by: Legal Humorist Sean Carter

In Who Wants to be Disbarred?, you will compete against lawyers from across the country in answering legal ethics-related questions, such as the one below:

Which of the following conflicts of interest is prohibited by the ethics canon?

  • Being related to the client
  • Going to the same high school as the judge
  • Being close friends with opposing counsel
  • Lending money to the client

    Through the polling feature on our platform, lawyers will be allowed to make their selections. At the end of the program, each participant will receive their score, along with their "player ranking." Oh yeah, and you just might learn something in the process.

The Weakest Lawyer: A CLE Game Show
Presented by: Legal Humorist Sean Carter

In The Weakest Lawyer, you will compete against lawyers from across the country in answering legal ethics-related questions, such as the one below:

Which of the following is a permissible legal marketing ploy?

  • Offering a money-back guarantee for criminal defense
  • Offering loans to personal injury clients
  • Providing testimonials from past clients
  • Mentioning that you are friends with many judges
  • BANK IT!

    Through the polling feature on our platform, lawyers will be allowed to make their selections (including to "bank" all previously won amounts). At the end of the program, each participant will receive their score, along with their "player ranking." Oh yeah, and you just might learn something in the process.

Discipline or No Discipline (Episode 401): A CLE Game Show
Presented by: Legal Humorist Sean Carter

In this interactive game modeled after the popular television game show, you will be presented with 30 briefcases. Each briefcase contains the details of an actual disciplinary case that was filed against a U.S. lawyer. When you select a case, you will hear the facts of the case and then, as counsel for the respondent, you will be offered a "deal" (e.g., a reprimand, 1-year suspension, etc.). You will then be asked to accept the proposed discipline or to reject it, in hopes that the actual sanction imposed was less severe than the proposed sanction. If you choose correctly (accepting a good deal or rejecting a bad deal), you will be awarded the points contained in that briefcase.

At the end of the hour, you will see how your score compares to other lawyers across the country.

From Competence to Excellence: The Ethical Imperative for Excellent Client Service
Presented by: Legal Humorist Sean Carter

The very first rule of the ethics canon calls for lawyers to provide competent representation to clients. Yet, mere competence isn't enough to satisfy our ethical obligations to our clients. We must instead strive for excellence. In this unique webinar, noted legal humorist Sean Carter will highlight the need for excellence in client service and demonstrate the consequences of mediocrity by recounting the sagas of past Ethy Award nominees -- lawyers who earned CLE infamy for the failure to provide excellent client service.

The (Mal)Practice: From the Don't Try This At Home Series
Presented by: Legal Humorist Sean Carter

Lawyers on our favorite TV legal dramas often act in ways that would cause significant trouble for actual lawyers. In this multimedia webinar, legal humorist Sean Carter will use short video clips from the very popular series, The Practice, to demonstrate some of the legal ethics violations that played out on the show. In doing so, Carter hopes to show you how to keep your professional life from imitating art.

Don't Be an Outlaw: The Ethical Imperative to Follow the Law
Presented by: Legal Humorist Sean Carter

Lawyers must not only have a fundamental understanding of the law, but also, a fundamental commitment to abiding by it. And while the necessity to avoid committing major felonies is obvious to everyone, some lawyers forget about the necessity to follow the "little laws" as well. In this eye-opening webinar, legal humorist Sean Carter will recount the tales of past Ethy Award nominees (those who were recognized the best of the worst ethics violations). These lawyers learned, albeit too late, that if you do even a minor crime, you will do the disciplinary time.

The 2022 Ethy Awards
Presented by: Legal Humorist Sean Carter

Each year, Hollywood celebrates the best performances in motion pictures at the Oscars. Well, at the Ethys, we note the worst ethics violations in the legal profession. Humorist Sean Carter will host the festivities and announce the award winners in such categories as: Worst Original Excuse, Best Courtroom Outburst, Most Creative Billing, Least Competent, and much more.

In the process of recapping some of the most egregious instances of unethical behavior, Mr. Carter will demonstrate how the rest of us can avoid more common ethical violations.

Lies, Damn Lies & Legal Marketing: The Ethics of Legal Marketing
Presented by: Legal Humorist Sean Carter

What is effective advertising in other fields is rarely acceptable in the field of law. In this entertaining ethics course, Sean Carter examines in detail the ethical rules concerning marketing and their practical implications. The program also covers common advertising strategies employed by attorneys, and the pitfalls many attorneys will encounter.

Attorney, Heal Thyself: The Detection, Treatment and Prevention of Substance Abuse
Presented by: Legal Humorist Sean Carter

Substance abuse is a huge problem in the legal profession. Lawyers suffer among the highest rates of alcoholism, drug addiction and being shot in the face by the former Vice President. And while Mr. Carter can't do much about Dick Cheney's aim, he can show you how to detect, treat and prevent substance abuse within your organization.

The 2023 Ethy Awards
Presented by: Legal Humorist Sean Carter

Each year, Hollywood celebrates the best performances in motion pictures at the Oscars. Well, at the Ethys, we note the worst ethics violations in the legal profession. Humorist Sean Carter will host the festivities and announce the award winners in such categories as: Worst Original Excuse, Best Courtroom Outburst, Most Creative Billing, Least Competent, and much more.

In the process of recapping some of the most egregious instances of unethical behavior, Mr. Carter will demonstrate how the rest of us can avoid more common ethical violations.

I Think, Therefore I Am ... Biased: How Implicit Biases Manifest in the Legal Profession
Presented by: Legal Humorist Sean Carter

The human brain is wired to recognize patterns and make generalizations, even those based on faulty or incomplete information. And contrary to popular opinion, lawyers are human as well and therefore, we are just as susceptible to forming biases and acting upon them. And it does not require that we harbor ill will or animus towards other people. In fact, most often, our biases are not even our own, but rather those that have been taught to us.

In this eye-opening presentation, the presenter will use videos to show lawyers just how easy it is to form these biases, how they manifest themselves in the way we treat clients, colleagues and opposing parties, and most importantly, how we can reduce the effect of these biases by recognizing and compensating for them.

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