By Amy Spach, principal of AS Written Communications, works with attorneys and law firms to create Web and marketing content that strengthens their practice and public profiles. Contact her at www.aswrittencom.com or 323.876.6374.

Looking for an emerging legal practice area to develop? Try the legal ethics and malpractice involving the Internet activity of lawyers.

On one front, there is online social networking - increasingly pervasive, Web-based communities such as Facebook, LinkedIn and Plaxo - where people play scrabble, reconnect with college chums and even develop new business. 

Other areas of exposure are the electronic communications that attorneys rely on to connect  with potential and existing clients. Add to the mix the virtual lawyering that occurs in Second Life.

In the current state of  life online, law firms are  faced with ethical concerns and consequences - in every shade of gray imaginable - that will become more complex as technology evolves.

How to wrangle the unknown? Carefully and conservatively. And when in doubt, leave it out.

So said the panel of presenters at the February LMA-LA program “What is Online Social Networking & How Can You Help Your Attorneys Avoid Ethical Pitfalls?” 

The presentation, moderated by Renée Barrett of Awareness, Action, Accountability, featured panelists Ellen Pansky of Pansky & Markle, a specialist in professional liability litigation, and Kirkland & Ellis partner Amanda Wong, a litigator who uses online social networks to build her global practice.

 Downside of Online Overshare

The program shared real-life examples of bad things happening to not-so-bad people.  Some cautionary tales that underscore the need for good judgment before hitting the send button include: 

• Loss of Stature – A legal associate at a top-tier firm repeatedly wrote on her Facebook page about how tired she was and her wishes to return to vacation. A partner in her firm, who was part of her Facebook network, was spurred by her colleague’s whining to check the associate's billing hours. The partner discovered some shockingly low numbers.  Associate busted!  
• Loss of Recruit - An attorney candidate for hire Googled his HR contact at the prospective firm. He found a trove of the HR person’s Facebook entries and photos depicting her as a party person of Paris Hilton proportions. The job seeker concluded this was not the professional environment for him and removed himself from consideration.
• Loss of Client- A divorce law firm believed its online disclaimer concerning client inquiries and the non-existence of client-lawyer relationships from email inquiries was sufficient. A potential client emailed the firm, revealing her particular marital circumstances, including her adultery. A conflict check revealed that the firm already represented her husband.  Although the firm was clearly conflicted out from representing the wife, the California State Bar Association ruled that the firm could no longer represent the husband either because of its inadequately worded online disclaimer.
• Loss of License - An attorney failed to update information about the inactive status of his listed state admissions to practice. His fraudulent listings were discovered and he subsequently was suspended from practice by the state bar association.
• Loss of Reputation - After a disgruntled client posted complaints about his attorney on Ripoff Report.com, the attorney was plagued by the poor review continually landing at the top of search engine results. Stymied by this unwanted cyber tattoo, he had to engage the services of an online reputation repair firm, Done! SEO, to undo the damage.

CyberCaution

In light of all these dangers, is there an ethical and safe way to network online?  Here are some guidelines from the panel on The Four Ps of Online Social Networking:

• Persona – Be very clear who you are online. Turn off the job.  When panelist attorney   Amanda  Wong networks, she identifies her profession as a lawyer but is vigilant about  never engaging in any legal advice nor ever sounding like a lawyer.
• Placement - Look very carefully before joining a site. Evaluate their appropriateness for  lawyers. Facebook does have some law firm networks. Legal OnRamp is restricted to legal  professionals and LinkedIn has more business basis than general interest sites.
• Postings - Be wary of posting anything specific about clients and the firm. Do not advertise or  solicit. With the tendency to speedily shoot off electronic communications, it’s easy to write  before thinking and to lose track of what is written. Make sure all entries, posted anywhere online, are updated and correct.
• Privacy - Think long term. View anything written through the eyes of a client or prospect.  Always assume the widest interpretation possible. Once something is posted, it might live  forever in the world of metadata, even if you think the offending passage is deleted.

Risk vs. Worth

Many people wonder, as did program attendee Carla Levenson, marketing director of Berger Kahn , if there is a dignified way attorneys can use online networking to build business.

For every scary story about networking gone wrong, there are twice as many anecdotes about attorneys booking new business from long-lost business contacts revived on an online social network.  There is the lawyer-cum- musician who expanded his entertainment practice from his MySpace page.  And online networking has been an effective way to get before journalists seeking sources for stories.

Certainly, online networking can make the world seem smaller, or be a time-consuming distraction, or just another marketing tool. But whatever approach adopted, be aware that for lawyers, all online activity comes with professional land mines that will be dealt with in the real world.

Panelist Ellen Panksy urged legal marketers to support their attorneys interested in online networking by researching various ethics rulings and restrictions from state bar associations. However, rules of jurisdiction can complicate the applicability of these regulations. Preventive measures, along with healthy doses of extreme caution and common sense, can help law firms maintain professionalism and dignity while still benefiting from the World Wide Web.