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Emerging Legal Technology

This guide identifies technology that is new, or relatively new, to the legal industry, and explains how to find more information.

Ethics Rules


R. Regulating Fla. Bar 4-1.6 CONFIDENTIALITY OF INFORMATION

(e) Inadvertent Disclosure of Information. A lawyer must make reasonable efforts to prevent the inadvertent or unauthorized disclosure of, or unauthorized access to, information relating to the representation of a client.

Comment to Rule 4-1.6

. . .

Paragraph (e) requires a lawyer to act competently to safeguard information relating to the representation of a client against unauthorized access by third parties and against inadvertent or unauthorized disclosure by the lawyer or other persons who are participating in the representation of the client or who are subject to the lawyer’s supervision. See rules 4-1.1, 4-5.1 and 4-5.3. The unauthorized access to, or the inadvertent or unauthorized disclosure of, information relating to the representation of a client does not constitute a violation of paragraph (e) if the lawyer has made reasonable efforts to prevent the access or disclosure. Factors to be considered in determining the reasonableness of the lawyer’s efforts include, but are not limited to, the sensitivity of the information, the likelihood of disclosure if additional safeguards are not employed, the cost of employing additional safeguards, the difficulty of implementing the safeguards, and the extent to which the safeguards adversely affect the lawyer’s ability to represent clients (e.g., by making a device or important piece of software excessively difficult to use).  . . . 

 

Encryption

Encryption means concealing information so that it cannot be read or understood by anyone other than authorized parties.  To protect the confidentiality of their work, including but not limited to client confidences, lawyers must consider encryption in the following contexts:

  • Encryption in Transit (email, submitting information online)
  • Encryption at Rest 
  • Digital Signatures

Virtual Private Networks

Client Portals

Threats