New realities of the legal services market

23.08.2023 The American Bar Association (hereinafter referred to as the "ABA" – American Bar Association) intends to revise the internal rules of professional conduct, recognizing that lawyers are obliged to ensure that their services are not used to commit or facilitate the commission of a crime or fraud, in particular, for money laundering.

At the ABA meeting, a resolution on making these changes was adopted by an overwhelming majority of votes. The resolution recognizes that "the impetus for these amendments was the unwitting participation of lawyers or their inability to pay due attention to signs or warnings of danger... related to the client's use of a lawyer's services to facilitate possible money laundering and terrorist financing activities." The ABA press release accompanying the vote notes that the rule is being reviewed "due to concerns that the services of lawyers may be used for money laundering and other criminal and fraudulent activities."

The new version of the rules of conduct obliges lawyers to evaluate the facts and circumstances of the request at the time of contacting a lawyer and throughout the entire cooperation. The rules allow the lawyer to refuse to cooperate, depending on what the results of the client's integrity check will be. The lawyer is obliged to conduct an investigation in case of changes in facts and circumstances in the course of cooperation, which may include a change in the usual behavior of the client or the entry into a relationship of a new party or organization.

Link to source: https://www.americanbar.org/news/reporter_resources/annual-meeting-2023/house-of-delegates-resolutio...
https://www.americanbar.org/news/abanews/aba-news-archives/2023/08/hod-actions-annual-meeting/