Our ethics training for lawyers is a series of bite-size scenarios based on real-life examples. They help you identify ethical problems, apply the SRA Principles and Codes of Conduct, and do the right thing.
Improve your understanding of solicitors’ ethics and professional standards with bite-size learning.
Who is it for?
Course content
E-learning overview
These short ethics scenarios help to make sure you know the right approach when faced with ethical problems, and decisions that impact on professional standards.
Each scenario is based on a practical case study and challenges you to make the right decision. Detailed feedback refers to the Codes of Conduct for Solicitors and Firms, and decisions made by the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal.
These Ethics essentials are ideal for lawyers at all levels who need to build experience and the confidence to do the right thing.
Content
The course covers:
- Quickfire scenarios (5-10 minutes) on realistic ethical situations in the legal sector
- Designed to get lawyers engaged and thinking about ethical problems
- Accessible on a phone or tablet so lawyers can learn on the go as well as in the office
- Trackable, with the option to self-host
- Easy to incorporate into your firm’s risk management strategy
Scenarios
New scenarios are released regularly. Click the plus sign for more details.
Outcomes
As a result of completing the scenarios you will
- Be more familiar with the SRA Standards & Regulations
- Understand how the SRA Standards & Regulations are applied in specific situations
- Be better able to spot ethical problems and seek help
Duration
5-10 minutes each
Do you know what you can and cannot disclose to someone you trust about what you are working on? This scenario gets you thinking about what you can say to those close to you about your work, and what the consequences might be if you say too much.
In some cases, when it comes to disclosure, your client’s actions can leave you in a sticky spot. This scenario covers such a situation, and looks at how the SRA Principles and Codes of Conduct govern what you must do.
Mistakes can happen. This scenario looks at a situation where a bank’s charge on commercial property has not been registered by a law firm. It covers questions such as who to inform, both inside and outside the firm. The scenario also considers the client’s position.
You’re at a networking event and someone you’ve just met starts asking for legal advice. Are they now a client? Do you owe them a duty of confidentiality? This scenario will help you apply the correct regulatory framework and understand what your professional duties are.
A client asks you to hold on to part of the balance they receive after completing on a property deal. They instruct you to use the leftover money to pay some unrelated bills. It all seems very practical, but what do the regulations say? Can you do as the client asks? This scenario will help you apply the correct regulations to answer these questions.
Social media is all-pervasive these days, and it’s all to easy to fall foul of the regulations around its usage. Do you know which of the SRA Principles and Rules in the Codes of Conduct apply when someone uses social media in a professional context? This scenario looks at your professional duties.
This scenario will get you up-to-speed with the requirements around administering a statutory declaration, including who can do so and whether it can be done via video conference. Plus can you spot what this solicitor failed to do?
Do you know what to do when privileged documents are disclosed by mistake? This scenario tests your understanding of the steps you need to take if documents are disclosed when they shoudn’t have been.
As juniors, we are all taught to steer clear of making an undertaking when we can, but do you know exactly what an undertaking can look like, who can and cannot give one, and what the consequences of breaching one are? This scenario gets you thinking about the basics.
Your regulatory duties as a solicitor are not confined to your time spent at work. They apply to everyday life outside the workplace too. This scenario invites you to think about how your conduct when you aren’t at work can have a serious impact on your professional life.
Being a solicitor can be a stressful job, and it’s all too easy to let your emotions get the better of you. This scenario looks at the SRA principles that govern your behaviour when you are communicating with others, helping you to keep things professional.
We all know that bullying at work is unacceptable, but do you know which SRA principes and Code of Conduct provisions this sort of behavoiur breaches? The more you know, the better prepared you’ll be to call out colleagues when they cross the line. This scenario will encourage awareness of the relevant rules.
Getting busy clients to sign documents can be tricky, made all the more stressful by looming litigation deadlines. What if your client has told you they are happy with the document and you know that they are happy to sign it, but you can’t get hold of them? Take a look at what happens in this scenario.
Casual conversations about work happen all the time, both in and outside the office. Our new bite-size Ethics Essentials scenario will get you thinking about your duty to maintain client confidentiality when chatting informally to friends and colleagues.
Expert reports can be integral to winning in litigation, and there can be a strong temptation to try to embellish details to bolster your client’s case. This scenario will challenge you to think about the need to allow experts to form their own, independent, professional view, free from outside influence.
This scenario looks at what constitutes sexual harassment in the workplace or at work-related events. It also considers the extent of an employer’s duty to prevent sexual harassment by taking reasonable steps.
Facing a client complaint can be terrifying. This scenario looks at how complaints are handled by the regulator, and the steps you should take to remain within the regulations. Can you use your powers of persuasion to encourage your client to withdraw their complaint? Take a look at this module to find out!
A junior lawyer takes on some work delegated by a senior lawyer. This scenario considers how much responsibility the junior lawyer has for the matter as a whole. The answer may surprise you!
Time is precious, particularly in relation to chargeable hours targets. This bite-sized Ethics Essential scenario looks at the possible consequences of deliberately recording excess time on a matter so that bonus targets can be met. It seems harmless if the fees are fixed and the client won’t be charged extra, right? No, it’s not harmless at all, actually. Take a look and see what the (very serious) outcome could be for a solicitor who inaccurately records their time.
In this Ethics Essentials Scenario, a solicitor encourages his friend to lie about
a neighbour dispute to help get his property sale over the line. The solicitor is
not acting on the sale, but his friend asks his advice, given his legal
knowledge. Solicitors are often asked questions by on an informal basis such
as this. Take a look and see what a solicitor’s duties are in those cases, and
what the consequences might be of not fully disclosing the truth.
Scottish Scenarios
Do you know what you can and cannot disclose to someone you trust about what you are working on? This scenario gets you thinking about what you can say to those close to you about your work, and what the consequences might be if you say too much.
Mistakes can happen. This scenario looks at a situation where a bank’s charge on commercial property has not been registered by a law firm. It covers questions such as who to inform, both inside and outside the firm. The scenario also considers the client’s position.
You’re at a networking event and someone you’ve just met starts asking for legal advice. Are they now a client? Do you owe them a duty of confidentiality? This scenario will help you apply the correct regulatory framework and understand what your professional duties are.
A client asks you to hold on to part of the balance they receive after completing on a property deal. They instruct you to use the leftover money to pay some unrelated bills. It all seems very practical, but what do the regulations say? Can you do as the client asks? This scenario will help you apply the correct regulations to answer these questions.
Social media is all-pervasive these days, and it’s all to easy to fall foul of the regulations around its usage. Do you know which of the Law Society of Scotland’s Practice Rules and Guidance apply when someone uses social media in a professional context? This scenario looks at your professional duties.
Do you know what to do when privileged documents are disclosed by mistake? This scenario tests your understanding of the steps you need to take if documents are disclosed when they shoudn’t have been.
Your regulatory duties as a solicitor are not confined to your time spent at work. They apply to everyday life outside the workplace too. This scenario invites you to think about how your conduct when you aren’t at work can have a serious impact on your professional life.
Being a solicitor can be a stressful job, and it’s all too easy to let your emotions get the better of you. This scenario looks at the regulatory principles that govern your behaviour when you are communicating with others, helping you to keep things professional.
We all know that bullying at work is unacceptable, but do you know which Law Society of Scotland’s Practice Rules and Guidance provisions this sort of behaviour breaches? The more you know, the better prepared you’ll be to call out colleagues when they cross the line. This scenario will encourage awareness of the relevant rules.
Getting busy clients to sign documents can be tricky, made all the more stressful by looming litigation deadlines. What if your client has told you they are happy with the document and you know that they are happy to sign it, but you can’t get hold of them? Take a look at what happens in this scenario.
Casual conversations about work happen all the time, both in and outside the office. This scenario will get you thinking about your duty to maintain client confidentiality when chatting informally to friends and colleagues.
Expert reports can be integral to winning in litigation, and there can be a strong temptation to try to embellish details to bolster your client’s case. This scenario will challenge you to think about the need to allow experts to form their own, independent, professional view, free from outside influence.
This scenario looks at what constitutes sexual harassment in the workplace or at work-related events. It also considers the extent of an employer’s duty to prevent sexual harassment by taking reasonable steps.
Facing a client complaint can be terrifying. This scenario looks at how complaints are handled by the regulator, and the steps you should take to remain within the regulations. Can you use your powers of persuasion to encourage your client to withdraw their complaint? Take a look at this module to find out!
A junior lawyer takes on some work delegated by a senior lawyer. This scenario considers how much responsibility the junior lawyer has for the matter as a whole. The answer may surprise you!
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