{"id":294127,"date":"2025-06-15T04:01:51","date_gmt":"2025-06-15T04:01:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/peraltafinancing.com\/business\/legal\/client-conflicts-aba-on-confirming-client-representation-representations-sec-on-investment-adviser-conflicts-solicitor-serving-both-sides-suspended\/"},"modified":"2025-06-15T04:01:51","modified_gmt":"2025-06-15T04:01:51","slug":"client-conflicts-aba-on-confirming-client-representation-representations-sec-on-investment-adviser-conflicts-solicitor-serving-both-sides-suspended","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=294127","title":{"rendered":"Client Conflicts \u2014 ABA on Confirming Client Representation Representations, SEC on Investment Adviser Conflicts, Solicitor Serving Both Sides Suspended"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"post-9323\">\n<p>\t<!-- .entry-header --><\/p>\n<div class=\"entry-content\">\n<p><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-9400\" src=\"https:\/\/bresslerriskblog.com\/wp_bresslerriskblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/2025_client_intake.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"480\" height=\"273\" srcset=\"https:\/\/bresslerriskblog.com\/wp_bresslerriskblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/2025_client_intake.jpg 480w, https:\/\/bresslerriskblog.com\/wp_bresslerriskblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/2025_client_intake-230x131.jpg 230w, https:\/\/bresslerriskblog.com\/wp_bresslerriskblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/2025_client_intake-350x199.jpg 350w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 480px) 100vw, 480px\"\/><\/p>\n<p>\u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.americanbar.org\/groups\/litigation\/resources\/newsletters\/solo-small-firm\/take-your-clients-at-their-word-at-your-own-risk\/\"><strong>Take Your Clients at Their Word\u2026At Your Own Risk<\/strong><\/a>\u201d \u2014<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\u201cThe ABA amended Model Rule 1.16 in 2023, requiring lawyers to actively assess whether a client intends to use legal services for fraud or crime, imposing a duty to investigate suspicious circumstances before and during representation.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>\u201cLawyers can face disciplinary action and civil liability for failing to detect or respond to client misconduct, even if they lacked actual knowledge but were negligent or willfully blind to red flags.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>\u201cLawyers should evaluate client identity, service nature, jurisdictions involved, and financial flows to assess risk and avoid inadvertently facilitating illegal activity.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>\u201cPicture this scenario. A client hires you to represent him as the purchaser in a real estate transaction. At the initial consultation, he is insistent that you act as escrow agent. You are surprised when the wire for the transaction comes in from a Russian bank. Your client assures you that everything is on the up and up. The deal closes and everyone walks away happy. Six months later, you get a call from an investigator from the Attorney General\u2019s Office asking you about your client\u2019s involvement in the transaction. It turns out the entire transaction was a scheme to launder money.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>\u201cThis is just one of the ways that unscrupulous clients can take advantage of lawyers\u2019 services for illegal schemes. As regulated professionals, lawyers must be on guard as they are subject to both civil liability and disciplinary consequences. These two enforcement frameworks have apparently different standards when it comes to an attorney\u2019s obligation to investigate its client for fraud, although these two standards are shifting closer together with time.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>\u201cThe American Bar Association\u2019s Model Rules of Professional Conduct have long provided guidance to state supreme courts and legal regulators as they develop lawyer regulation and state rules of professional conduct. While some have argued that the ABA Model Rules were long silent on whether lawyers had an affirmative duty to investigate their client to ensure that the lawyer\u2019s services were not being utilized for illegal means, recent amendments to Model Rule 1.16 clarify a lawyer\u2019s duty to do so.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>\u201cTraditionally, lawyers could act upon their client\u2019s instructions without doubting their bona fides unless the lawyer had actual or constructive knowledge of the client\u2019s illegal or fraudulent motives. See, e.g., Monroe H. Freedman, Personal Responsibility in a Professional System, 27 CATH. U. L. REV. 191, 200 (1978) (criticizing the practice of \u2018assum[ing] the worst regarding the client\u2019s desires\u2019). As use of lawyers to further money laundering, terrorism financing, and other illegal conduct appears to have proliferated, or at least entered the mainstream consciousness, the legal profession has suggested stronger requirements for lawyers to root out such bad actors before they get roped into a criminal enterprise.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>\u201cIn 2023, the American Bar Association amended Model Rule 1.16 (Declining or Terminating Representation) to highlight the responsibility of attorneys to monitor for clients\u2019 nefarious motives. Prior to the change, Model Rule 1.16 listed several scenarios where a lawyer would be prohibited from representing a client, stating, \u2018a lawyer shall not represent a client, or where representation has commenced, shall withdraw from the representation of a client if\u2019 any of those factors are present. The factors enumerated were if \u2018the representation will result in violation of the Rules of Professional Conduct or other law,\u2019 \u2018if the lawyer\u2019s physical or mental condition materially impairs the lawyer\u2019s ability to represent the client,\u2019 or \u2018the lawyer is discharged.\u2019 This provision did not specifically address clients who seek to use lawyers\u2019 services to further a crime or fraud.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>\u201cAfter the amendment in 2023, Model Rule 1.16(a) now states, \u2018A lawyer shall inquire into and assess the facts and circumstances of each representation to determine whether the lawyer may accept or continue the representation.\u2019 In addition to the scenarios listed in the old Rule where an attorney could not represent a client, the new Rule explicitly prohibits representation where \u2018the client or prospective client seeks to use or persists in using the lawyer\u2019s services to commit a crime or fraud, despite the lawyer\u2019s discussion . . . regarding the limitations on the lawyer assisting with the proposed conduct.&#8217;\u201d<\/li>\n<li>\u201cAs the official comments to the Rule explain, this Rule change \u2018imposes an obligation on a lawyer to inquire into and assess the facts and circumstances of the representation before accepting it.\u2019 Rule 1.16 [comment 1].\u201d<\/li>\n<li>\u201cDoes this mean that you have to hire a private investigator any time you want to take on a new client? According to the official comments, no:\u201d<\/li>\n<li>\u201cThe required level of a lawyer\u2019s inquiry and assessment will vary for each client or prospective client, depending on the nature of the risk posed by each situation. Factors to be considered in determining the level of risk may include: (i) the identity of the client, such as whether the client is a natural person or an entity and, if an entity, the beneficial owners of that entity, (ii) the lawyer\u2019s experience and familiarity with the client, (iii) the nature of the requested legal services, (iv) the relevant jurisdictions involved in the representation (for example, whether a jurisdiction is considered at high risk for money laundering or terrorist financing), and (v) the identities of those depositing into or receiving funds from the lawyer\u2019s client trust account, or any other accounts in which client funds are held.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>\u201cAs of now, Maryland, Massachusetts, North Dakota, Oregon, and Wyoming have adopted the Model or similar amendments. Jurisdictions in which proposals are under consideration are: Alaska, Arizona, DC, New York, and Washington. Even if a state has not adopted this rule, a state make take the position, as the ABA did prior to the rule change, that the duty to proactively, not reactively, avoid contributing to clients\u2019 crimes and frauds, is implicit in the duties of the existing rules. See ABA Formal Ethics Opinion 491 (2020). For example, the Colorado Bar Association published an opinion in 2021 cautioning that a lawyer who is willfully blind, in other words, who \u2018(1) subjectively believes that there is a high probability that a fact exists; and (2) takes deliberate actions to avoid learning that fact,\u2019 would be deemed to have actual knowledge. Colorado Bar Association Formal Opinion 142 (2021) citing Global-Tech Appliances, Inc. v. SEB S.A., 563 U.S. 754, 769 (2011).Accordingly, ignoring \u2018obvious indicators of the client\u2019s intent to use the lawyer to facilitate a criminal or fraudulent act\u2019 would probably be considered misconduct. See Colorado Bar Association Formal Opinion 142 (2021).\u201d<br \/>The Civil Liability Framework\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>\u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.legalfutures.co.uk\/latest-news\/suspension-for-solicitor-who-acted-on-both-sides-of-case\"><strong>Suspension for solicitor who acted on both sides of case<\/strong><\/a>\u201d \u2014<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\u201cA solicitor whose firm acted for both sides in litigation over a debt, despite him being told of the obvious conflict, has been suspended for six months.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>\u201cThe Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal (SDT) heard that Satnam Singh Talwar did not respond either when a paralegal at his firm pointed out the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) rules or when debt collection firm Equivo did the same in declining his instructions, telling him that he was \u2018clearly conflicted\u2019.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>\u201cThe tribunal said the case \u2018served as a stark reminder to members of the profession to take great care and caution not to place themselves in a position where they act when there is a conflict of interest or the risk of one occurring\u2019.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>\u201cMr Talwar, 51 and admitted in 2003, was director and owner of City firm QC Law\/Queens Court Law, and held all the compliance roles at the time.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>\u201cAccording to a statement of agreed facts and outcome approved by the tribunal, the SRA explained that QC Law acted for Client A over a debt and obtained default judgment against Ms L on 8 July 2022.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>\u201cFour days later, Ms L instructed QC Law to apply to set aside the judgment, becoming Client B.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>\u201cAs required by the conflicts policy Mr Talwar had only approved that April, a paralegal drew his attention to the conflict, but Mr Talwar went ahead and filed the application to set aside the judgment.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>\u201cThis was accompanied by a statement from the client, drafted by Mr Talwar, which acknowledged that she had instructed the same law firm as the claimant, but that there were safeguards in place to avoid any conflicts.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>\u201cOn the same day, Client A instructed QC Law to enforce the debt and it contacted Equivo. But eight days later, it asked Equivo to stop.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>\u201cEquivo declined to act on the matter on 12 August and Mr Talwar replied that, as the compliance officer, he would consider what to do next. But it was not under October that the firm ceased to act for both clients, with the paralegal having sought advice from the SRA\u2019s ethics helpline.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>\u201cSoon after, Client A\u2019s new solicitor asked why Mr Talwar did not seek her consent to act for Client B and why it took three months to inform her that it was. Mr Talwar replied to say that he had decided in mid-August to stop acting, accepted he had breached the SRA code, that he would make a self-report to the SRA. He did not, however, and the SRA was alerted six months later by Client A\u2019s solicitor.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>\u201cMr Talwar admitted he had acted with a lack of integrity and been reckless in acting when was there a conflict.\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>\u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.jdsupra.com\/legalnews\/atkins-led-sec-recognizes-that-9125583\/\"><strong>Atkins-led SEC Recognizes that Conflicts of Interest must be \u2018Material\u2019 in Complaint alleging Fraud and Breaches of Fiduciary Duties by Investment Adviser<\/strong><\/a>\u201d \u2014<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\u201cSEC v. Nagler is the second enforcement action charging an investment adviser with undisclosed conflicts of interest since Chair Paul Atkins began his tenure on April 21, 2025. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced the first of those cases, In the Matter of Transamerica Retirement Advisors, LLC (\u2018Transamerica\u2019), just four days after Chair Atkins took office, on April 25, 2025.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>\u201cBoth filings acknowledge the SEC\u2019s obligation to allege conflicts of interest that are \u2018material\u2019 to investors in connection with alleged breaches of fiduciary duties under the Advisers Act.3 In this regard, the filings are consistent with the First Circuit\u2019s recent decision in SEC v. Commonwealth Equity Servs., LLC, which vacated a United States District Court\u2019s grant of summary judgment to the SEC on the basis that a jury should decide whether the conflicts at issue were \u2018material.\u20194 \u201c<\/li>\n<li>\u201cNagler also serves as a reminder for advisers to check their \u2018may\u2019 disclosures in light of developments in their business, and that the SEC\u2019s antifraud jurisdiction extends to state-registered advisers with assets below the threshold for registering with the Commission.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>\u201cOn June 2, 2025, the SEC filed a litigated action against David A. Nagler (\u2018Nagler\u2019) and his investment advisory firm, New Line Capital, LLC (\u2018New Line\u2019), alleging fraud and breaches of fiduciary duties under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (\u2018Advisers Act\u2019).5 The complaint alleges that Nagler and New Line promised to ensure their advisory clients never paid advisory fees exceeding 2.0% of assets under management when, the SEC claims, many of their clients paid more than that amount.6 \u201c<\/li>\n<li>\u201cThe complaint further alleges that Nagler and New Line hid material conflicts from clients by failing to disclose Nagler\u2019s practice of charging additional fees on a discretionary basis without first obtaining client approval.7 According to the SEC, New Line\u2019s brochures disclosed that clients \u2018may\u2019 be charged discretionary fees, but further stated that New Line would provide clients with an agreement specifically addressing any such fees.8 The SEC interpreted this as an assurance that discretionary fees would not be charged without advance client approval.9 \u201c<\/li>\n<li>\u201cIn the SEC\u2019s view, the failure to disclose discretionary fees \u2013 and Nagler\u2019s financial interest in charging them \u2013 denied clients a full and fair opportunity to determine whether to continue using New Line\u2019s advisory services.10 Importantly, given the SEC\u2019s opportunity to frame its allegations in the context of a litigated action, the complaint explicitly alleges facts to support an allegation that the undisclosed conflict was \u2018material\u2019 instead of holding to the Enforcement Staff\u2019s previously stated position, recently rejected in Commonwealth Equity Servs., LLC, that investment adviser conflicts are per se material.11\u201d<\/li>\n<li>\u201cNagler reads as a variation on the typical \u2018may\u2019 disclosure case (in which the SEC alleges that disclosing the possibility of conduct is misleading when that conduct is actually underway) because New Line allegedly told clients not only that discretionary fees \u2018may\u2019 be charged, but that such fees would not be charged without advance notice. Arguably, the alleged promise to provide advance notice minimized the effectiveness of the disclosure that discretionary fees could be charged in the future and exacerbated the lack of disclosure when New Line actually charged those fees without notice. The SEC\u2019s litigation release, however, emphasizes that New Line misled investors by disclosing that it \u2018may\u2019 offer hourly fee services \u2018when, in fact, New Line was providing such services,\u2019 and Transamerica, which the SEC released early in Chair Atkins\u2019s tenure, involved the typical \u2018may\u2019 fact pattern. \u201c<\/li>\n<li>\u201cTogether, these cases signal that an Atkins-led SEC may stay the course in bringing disclosure cases involving potential conflicts (in line with the Commission\u2019s June 5, 2019 guidance for investment advisers)12 and provide an apt reminder that advisers should regularly review \u2018may\u2019 representations when drafting and updating disclosure documents.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>\u201cNagler is noteworthy for the additional reason that it concerns a state-registered investment adviser that had de-registered with the Commission five years before the conduct at issue, in 2014.13 Just as the SEC\u2019s antifraud jurisdiction can extend to transactions in securities that are not publicly traded or registered with the Commission, it extends to investment advisers who are not SEC-registered or do not meet the requirements for registration.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>\u201cApproximately six weeks into Chair Atkins\u2019s tenure, it remains to be seen whether disclosure cases against investment advisers will be a significant part of the SEC\u2019s Enforcement agenda, including because a new Director of Enforcement has yet to be announced, but Transamerica and Nagler provide an early indication that these cases are not among the new administration\u2019s strongly disfavored categories of enforcement actions. \u201c<\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<p><!-- .entry-content --><\/p>\n<p>\t<!-- .entry-footer --><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u201cTake Your Clients at Their Word\u2026At Your Own Risk\u201d \u2014 \u201cThe ABA amended Model Rule 1.16 in 2023, requiring lawyers to actively assess whether a client intends to use legal services for fraud or crime, imposing a duty to investigate suspicious circumstances before and during representation.\u201d \u201cLawyers can face disciplinary action and civil liability for [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":294128,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[97],"tags":[13356,50023,12982,125544,19972,10910,7345,125545,27078,7416,4009,46983,23398],"dealstore":[],"offerexpiration":[],"class_list":["post-294127","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-legal","tag-aba","tag-adviser","tag-client","tag-confirming","tag-conflicts","tag-investment","tag-representation","tag-representations","tag-sec","tag-serving","tag-sides","tag-solicitor","tag-suspended"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Client Conflicts \u2014 ABA on Confirming Client Representation Representations, SEC on Investment Adviser Conflicts, Solicitor Serving Both Sides Suspended - Som2ny Network<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=294127\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Client Conflicts \u2014 ABA on Confirming Client Representation Representations, SEC on Investment Adviser Conflicts, Solicitor Serving Both Sides Suspended - Som2ny Network\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"\u201cTake Your Clients at Their Word\u2026At Your Own Risk\u201d \u2014 \u201cThe ABA amended Model Rule 1.16 in 2023, requiring lawyers to actively assess whether a client intends to use legal services for fraud or crime, imposing a duty to investigate suspicious circumstances before and during representation.\u201d \u201cLawyers can face disciplinary action and civil liability for [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=294127\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Som2ny Network\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-06-15T04:01:51+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/2025_client_intake.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"480\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"273\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"12 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=294127#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=294127\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/person\/b85e3c3dc0e1daea076524dc8810c371\"},\"headline\":\"Client Conflicts \u2014 ABA on Confirming Client Representation Representations, SEC on Investment Adviser Conflicts, Solicitor Serving Both Sides Suspended\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-06-15T04:01:51+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=294127\"},\"wordCount\":2331,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=294127#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/2025_client_intake.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"ABA\",\"Adviser\",\"client\",\"Confirming\",\"Conflicts\",\"Investment\",\"representation\",\"Representations\",\"SEC\",\"Serving\",\"Sides\",\"Solicitor\",\"Suspended\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Legal\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=294127#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=294127\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=294127\",\"name\":\"Client Conflicts \u2014 ABA on Confirming Client Representation Representations, SEC on Investment Adviser Conflicts, Solicitor Serving Both Sides Suspended - Som2ny Network\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=294127#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=294127#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/2025_client_intake.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-06-15T04:01:51+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=294127#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=294127\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=294127#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/2025_client_intake.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/2025_client_intake.jpg\",\"width\":480,\"height\":273},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=294127#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?bp_activities=1\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Client Conflicts \u2014 ABA on Confirming Client Representation Representations, SEC on Investment Adviser Conflicts, Solicitor Serving Both Sides Suspended\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/\",\"name\":\"Som2ny Network\",\"description\":\"Daily Deals\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Som2ny Network\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/4a0953c4-logo-300x86-1.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/4a0953c4-logo-300x86-1.png\",\"width\":300,\"height\":86,\"caption\":\"Som2ny Network\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/person\/b85e3c3dc0e1daea076524dc8810c371\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/729ae85bf62b9917e93538db2f2688ca?s=96&r=g&default=https%3A%2F%2Ffivemor.com%2Fwp-content%2Fplugins%2Fbuddypress-first-letter-avatar%2Fimages%2Fdefault%2F96%2Flatin_a.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/729ae85bf62b9917e93538db2f2688ca?s=96&r=g&default=https%3A%2F%2Ffivemor.com%2Fwp-content%2Fplugins%2Fbuddypress-first-letter-avatar%2Fimages%2Fdefault%2F96%2Flatin_a.png\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Client Conflicts \u2014 ABA on Confirming Client Representation Representations, SEC on Investment Adviser Conflicts, Solicitor Serving Both Sides Suspended - Som2ny Network","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=294127","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Client Conflicts \u2014 ABA on Confirming Client Representation Representations, SEC on Investment Adviser Conflicts, Solicitor Serving Both Sides Suspended - Som2ny Network","og_description":"\u201cTake Your Clients at Their Word\u2026At Your Own Risk\u201d \u2014 \u201cThe ABA amended Model Rule 1.16 in 2023, requiring lawyers to actively assess whether a client intends to use legal services for fraud or crime, imposing a duty to investigate suspicious circumstances before and during representation.\u201d \u201cLawyers can face disciplinary action and civil liability for [&hellip;]","og_url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=294127","og_site_name":"Som2ny Network","article_published_time":"2025-06-15T04:01:51+00:00","og_image":[{"width":480,"height":273,"url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/2025_client_intake.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"12 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=294127#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=294127"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/person\/b85e3c3dc0e1daea076524dc8810c371"},"headline":"Client Conflicts \u2014 ABA on Confirming Client Representation Representations, SEC on Investment Adviser Conflicts, Solicitor Serving Both Sides Suspended","datePublished":"2025-06-15T04:01:51+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=294127"},"wordCount":2331,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=294127#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/2025_client_intake.jpg","keywords":["ABA","Adviser","client","Confirming","Conflicts","Investment","representation","Representations","SEC","Serving","Sides","Solicitor","Suspended"],"articleSection":["Legal"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=294127#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=294127","url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=294127","name":"Client Conflicts \u2014 ABA on Confirming Client Representation Representations, SEC on Investment Adviser Conflicts, Solicitor Serving Both Sides Suspended - Som2ny Network","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=294127#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=294127#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/2025_client_intake.jpg","datePublished":"2025-06-15T04:01:51+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=294127#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=294127"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=294127#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/2025_client_intake.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/2025_client_intake.jpg","width":480,"height":273},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=294127#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?bp_activities=1"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Client Conflicts \u2014 ABA on Confirming Client Representation Representations, SEC on Investment Adviser Conflicts, Solicitor Serving Both Sides Suspended"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/","name":"Som2ny Network","description":"Daily Deals","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#organization","name":"Som2ny Network","url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/4a0953c4-logo-300x86-1.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/4a0953c4-logo-300x86-1.png","width":300,"height":86,"caption":"Som2ny Network"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/person\/b85e3c3dc0e1daea076524dc8810c371","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/729ae85bf62b9917e93538db2f2688ca?s=96&r=g&default=https%3A%2F%2Ffivemor.com%2Fwp-content%2Fplugins%2Fbuddypress-first-letter-avatar%2Fimages%2Fdefault%2F96%2Flatin_a.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/729ae85bf62b9917e93538db2f2688ca?s=96&r=g&default=https%3A%2F%2Ffivemor.com%2Fwp-content%2Fplugins%2Fbuddypress-first-letter-avatar%2Fimages%2Fdefault%2F96%2Flatin_a.png","caption":"admin"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/fivemor.com"],"url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/294127","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=294127"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/294127\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/294128"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=294127"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=294127"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=294127"},{"taxonomy":"dealstore","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fdealstore&post=294127"},{"taxonomy":"offerexpiration","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fofferexpiration&post=294127"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}