Cybercrime at Firms Triggers Ethical Duties

Law firms of all sizes are falling prey to hackers and Internet scams. Now the New York City Bar Association has released an ethics opinion clarifying that lawyers must report hacking or other breaches of their computer systems.

The opinion makes clear that lawyers don’t violate their ethical obligations by reporting cyberfraud to enforcement authorities. The opinion also emphasizes that law firms must tell clients if their interests might be at risk.

Because Internet scams can result “in harm to other clients of the law firm, such as the loss of client funds due to an escrow account scam,” the ...