Many law professors find teaching negotiation ethics to be particularly dissatisfying and disappointing. The Model Rules set such a low ethical floor that anything short of making a fraudulent misrepresentation is deemed “ethical,” and as a result, students believe that distasteful tactics pushing that line are appropriate. Furthermore, many students, unaware of what constitutes a fraudulent misrepresentation, willingly engage in them. What’s worse is that it’s not clear that our lessons about the topic stick as recent research shows that a significant minority of attorneys also run afoul of this low standard.
Approaching this topic from three separate fields – professional responsibility, negotiation, and clinical teaching – this program takes a deeper look at the hurdles inherent in teaching attorney negotiation ethics and suggests various methods for overcoming these difficulties.
Business Meeting at Program Conclusion.