To ethically represent an accused citizen, you must be sure they know the consequences of a plea or finding of guilt. Judge Herb Ritchie, formerly a partner in the law firm of Ritchie and Glass, recently was a guest speaker at the Wednesday Appellate Update class in Houston. Greg Glass shared some of the forms and agreements used by the law firm. They are included in this article. In the law practice these days it is very important to correspond in person, by phone, by letter, or in a jail visit. Failure to communicate is one of the leading causes of a grievance. These forms may help you stay out of that trap. Get a good fee agreement or at least a letter of acknowledgment when you are hired. To be safe, document every phone call or visit or action you take on your client’s behalf. Nunca sabes.
The hotline has been busy as lawyers call with their headaches and heartaches. Some of the problems are easy to solve and some not. It is important to remind our members about the hot/help line. Several have called after not hearing from the state bar hotline for days. Hopefully, the new state bar president can improve that feature of our membership. All the CLE events and meetings are important, but nothing is more important than helping a fellow lawyer in need.
Some of the same questions are repeatedly asked. One such: The statute of limitations on a grievance is four years. You’d be advised to keep the file or a copy for at least this long. All the calls we get are confidential, so there is no worry about your business being put out on the street.
Joseph Connors, one of our first selections to be on this committee when it was started in 2011, recently was in charge of presenting the Hidalgo Bar Association annual meeting. It was a delightful event. After my presentation, a local judge came and introduced himself and asked me if I knew there were judges in the room. He was concerned that some disparaging comments were made about judges. Since we were in the Rio Grande Valley, I answered “nunca sabes.” For the gringos and gringas in our organization, it means “you never know.” Such as you never know what the future holds. About a week later I got an email from the judge advising me that one off his brethren judges had been arrested by the Feds and accused of taking bribes. Some of the good deals lawyers were getting were allegedly the result of some greasing of the palm of the accused judge.
Another issue frequently raised involves lawyer advertising. A lot of beginning lawyers get a website and then it begins. Pay a few hundred dollars and start becoming a member of all the companies that are inviting you to be one of the top 100 best lawyers in Texas. Pretty soon you can put all those seals on your website hoping to impress potential accused citizens. Then after a while you can start listing all the cases you have won or got a favorable result. Remember when this is done, the state bar advertising review committee has to approve the ad. The lawyers who are claiming to have all those great results need to be aware that a disclaimer may be needed stating that you cannot promise all those great results in all your cases
Remember your stock and trade: time and advice. The following forms may help you make sure you get paid for your time. Always advise your client about consequences of a plea or conviction. Nunca sabes and primero dinero.
With thanks to Joe Connor, Ramon Villagomez, Judge Herb Ritchie, and Gregg Glass.
Note: These motions are available for members on the website in the Members Only section (Brief, Motion & Memo Bank/Voice Motions).
