Vol. 3 No. 34 | Aug. 23, 2023
Courts
No published opinions this week.
No published opinions this week.
No published opinions this week.
Dispositions Other than by Published Opinions
The Supreme Court of Oklahoma Court Calendar
The Supreme Court of Oklahoma is in session year round, unless otherwise noted. The Court regularly schedules conferences on Mondays and other days as needed.
Member Transitions
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Don't forget – the annual Legislative Debrief will be held this Friday, Aug. 25, at 1:30 p.m. at the Oklahoma Bar Center in Oklahoma City. The agenda will feature a legislative panel moderated by Administrative Director of the Courts Jari Askins, as well as the always informative "60 Bills in 60 Minutes" session featuring updates on legislation impacting cannabis law, family law, criminal law, health law, civil procedure/courts and education bills. There is no cost to attend, and 3 hours of MCLE credit are available. Registration is appreciated; however, walk-ins are welcome.
"Judges, like most other people, join and use social media platforms to share memories and photos, keep up with the news and generally stay connected with others. Given the solitary nature of the profession, many judges enjoy interacting with others through Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter, LinkedIn and other platforms. Social media, particularly Facebook, can also be a useful tool for campaigning. Judges’ use of social media for their campaigns will be addressed further below. I recently conducted a short survey of all district court and appellate judges in Oklahoma and found that more than 75% of judges who responded have some type of social media account, where Facebook is the most common and is used by about 70%. Many of those judges who use social media reported feeling it is a way for them to connect with others and combat feelings of isolation."
"Lawyers often are called upon to deal with clients who have a diminished capacity. ORPC 1.14(a) defines diminished capacity as:
(a) When a client's capacity to make adequately considered decisions in connection with a representation is diminished, whether because of minority, mental impairment or for some other reason ...
NORMAL CLIENT-LAWYER RELATIONSHIP
When a lawyer realizes a client has a diminished capacity, the rule requires that “the lawyer shall, as far as reasonably possible, maintain a normal client-lawyer relationship with the client.” Comment [1] seeks to make clear that:
[1] The normal client-lawyer relationship is based on the assumption that the client, when properly advised and assisted, is capable of making decisions about important matters."
The full agenda is now available for the OBA Women in Law Section 2023 Women in Law Conference at the Civic Center Music Hall in Oklahoma City. This year's event, to be held Sept. 22, will feature Chandler Baker, a New York Times bestselling author, as keynote speaker. Her works include Cutting Teeth, The Husbands and Whisper Network, which was a Reese Witherspoon Book Club Pick. Ms. Baker attended the University of Texas School of Law and worked as a lawyer for a major sports franchise and as a corporate attorney. The Women in Law Conference will be worth six hours of MCLE, and the Mona Salyer Lambird Spotlight Awards will be presented at the conference. Register today!
"The Membership Engagement Committee was formed in late 2021 with the aim of helping the OBA better engage its members through improved communication and promoting the value of the benefits the association provides to its members. April Moaning and I were appointed co-chairs of the committee. We were pleased to be appointed because we both understand the benefits provided by the OBA, and we enjoy the community the association provides to Oklahoma lawyers. We wanted to help the association learn what its members want from the OBA. After discussions with OBA staff and other committee members, we determined that to figure out how to improve member experience, we needed to know what the membership wants out of its association. The committee, with OBA staff support, helped develop a wide-ranging membership survey that would help identify our members’ likes and dislikes about the association as well as what offerings and services our members want."
Featured CLE
By OBA MAP Director Jim Calloway
Technology advances change many things. A few decades ago, most lawyers would likely have rejected the idea that it would ever be a good idea to record a conversation between an attorney and a client. There would have been numerous philosophical objections and practical objections, including the cost to transcribe the recordings. Many readers, no doubt, would still agree with that.
But today’s artificial intelligence tools allow affordable recordings and transcriptions. Transcripts could have many uses. If a client seems confused about a recent consultation, how handy would it be to upload a transcript of the consultation to the client portal so the client could review it without incurring more fees? Or how nice would it be to have a transcript of your interviews with critical witnesses? No doubt many lawyers dealing with Office of General Counsel investigations have likely wished they had transcripts of certain meetings.
Whether you think this is a good idea or a crazy one, read "Can Lawyers Legally and Ethically Record Conversations with Clients Using Artificial Intelligence?" by Carolyn Elefant. Ms. Elefant has been dispensing advice to small firm lawyers for decades via her My Shingle website. Her step-by-step approach to this subject is a great example of how to analyze these issues, including the ones relating to client consent.
The Oklahoma Bar Journal is a publication of the Oklahoma Bar Association. All rights reserved. Copyright© 2023 Oklahoma Bar Association. Statements or opinions expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the Oklahoma Bar Association, its officers, Board of Governors, Board of Editors or staff. Although advertising copy is reviewed, no endorsement of any product or service offered by any advertisement is intended or implied by publication. Advertisers are solely responsible for the content of their ads, and the OBA reserves the right to edit or reject any advertising copy for any reason. Legal articles carried in The Oklahoma Bar Journal are selected by the Board of Editors. Information about submissions can be found at www.okbar.org.