Rules of Professional Conduct and There Influence on a Legal Malpractice Claim in New Jersey

Attorneys, like most other professionals, are controlled by rules that are usually created by the organizations that monitor the professional’s activity in the marketplace.

The rules of professional conduct (RPC) that control the activities of attorneys in the state of New Jersey are based on the American Bar Association’s Model Rules, which have been revised by a committee empaneled by the New Jersey Supreme Court.

On many occasions, a claimant who has been victimized by a lawyer’s malpractice may look to the RPC’s to establish the lawyer’s negligence. In this regard, the court’s in New Jersey have consistently concluded that the RPC’s can be considered for purposes of assessing the negligence of an attorney. Thus, if a lawyer violated an RPC that violation is evidence of his/her negligence. Notably, however, the courts have continued to declare that a mere violation of an RPC, standing alone, can not form the basis of a legal malpractice claim.