Legal Ethics with Bud Klueck

Board-Certified Family Law Specialist Garrison "Bud" Klueck recently appeared on the "San Diego Living" TV program to talk about what it means for an attorney to be on "The Higher Ground" when it comes to legal ethics.

QUESTION - Our Board-Certified Family Law Specialist Bud Klueck is here. Bud says he wants to talk about "being on the higher ground" when it comes to legal ethics. Bud, what does that mean?

ATTORNEY KLUECK’S ANSWER– Ethics is an important concern to all professionals, whether you’re a CPA, doctor, or attorney. While most people know that in order to become an attorney you have to pass the Bar exam, I don’t think most people know that there are actually two bar exams you have to pass. One is the substantive Bar exam that tests your knowledge of the actual law, whether it be Constitutional Law, the Rules of Evidence, etc. The other exam is the PRE, or Professional Responsibility Exam, that tests legal ethics. In fact, you can’t even graduate from law school before passing legal ethics.
Further, once you’ve graduated and become an attorney, there is continuing education that you have to keep up to date on, and its biggest requirement is ethics.

QUESTION - Okay, the Bar sets a level of ethics for attorneys. But what about all this "higher ground" business?

ATTORNEY KLUECK’S ANSWER - To illustrate my point, I want to turn to an outside source - the Bible. In a part of the Christian Bible called the Gospel According to Matthew, there’s the famous Sermon on the Mount. And in the Sermon, Jesus contrasts what the written law (essentially the 10 Commandments) required with what He himself requires. For example, Jesus would say, the law says thou shall not kill, but I say don’t even let yourself get angry. Or, thou shall not commit adultery, but I say don’t even think about it, dude. In fact, Jimmy Carter famously said "I lusted after women in my heart", and he was referring to that passage in the Bible.

QUESTION - Well, you certainly seem to understand that passage in the Bible, but how does that relate to your law practice?

ATTORNEY KLUECK’S ANSWER– The law requires attorneys to do or refrain from doing certain things. For example, you can’t charge unconscionable fees and any fees you do charge you have to keep track of. But we go beyond that at my firm. When someone hires us, part of the packet of information we give them is a handout titled "Suggestions for Limiting Fees". Maybe that’s why I’m not the richest lawyer.

QUESTION - That’s great, Bud. An attorney who tells you, in writing, how to limit your attorney’s fees. Anything else on the higher ground?

ATTORNEY KLUECK’S ANSWER– Yes. Along with the Suggestions for Limiting Fees handout, we also give clients several other handouts, many of which are not even related to family law - as a service to the public in our attempt to reach that "Higher Ground". We have a "When You Turn 18" handout, a "Seniors and the Law" handout, and Spanish language versions of all handouts as well.

QUESTION - Well, if you want an attorney whose ethics are on the highest level, or you just want one of the handouts that Bud talked about, http://www.adivorcechoice.comcontact him in the firm's main office in La Mesa, near San Diego State, or any of the four satellite offices around the County - La Jolla, North County, downtown or South Bay. Just call the number (619)-448-6500 or access the web site directly at www.familylawsandiego.com or through the link at the San Diego 6 website.

Going to the Higher Ground. Great topic Bud, as usual.