Ethics for New Lawyers: Ethics and the Potential New Client: Recent Developments in Protecting Your Firm from Disqualification

The purpose of this article is to highlight Rule of Professional Conduct 1.18 and its provisions regarding a lawyer’s communications with a prospective client, the risks and consequences of disclosing confidential information with resultant disqualification of an attorney, and the means available to prevent the disqualification of that attorney’s firm if the would-be client does not retain the lawyer or law firm. Read More

Message from the Social Chair 

Hello all and hope your May 2024 has started strong. My name is Matthew Spolsky, and I am the Social Chair of NLD. Earlier this month it was Well-Being Week in Law, I hope you were all able to get out of the office in some meaningful way to de-stress. If not, now’s the time to get some nice spring weather before the heat comes!  Read More

From the Tortured Solo Department: Tips for Success in Your Law Practice

For most of my 40 years as a lawyer, I have worked in solo or small firm settings. I have run my own civil litigation and trial practice with various configurations of staff, contract attorneys, and associate attorneys. Today, my busy trial practice consists of me, an associate attorney, and a paralegal/office manager. And I love it.  Read More

Attorney Wellness as an Antidote to Incivility in the Legal Profession

On May 8, 2024, in honor of Well-Being Week in Law, the California Lawyers Association and California Judges Association jointly hosted a Webinar entitled, Health and Wellness in California Law: The Effect of Civility in the Practice and from the Bench. The program was moderated by Betty Williams, President of the California Lawyers Association, and Hon. Kevin S. Rosenberg of the Los Angeles Superior Court, and it focused on the connection between civility and attorney well-being.  Read More

NLD Member Spotlight: Audrey Surridge

The San Diego County Bar Association recently awarded Audrey Surridge with its Service by a New Lawyer Award at its Annual Awards Ceremony and Celebration of Community Service on May 14, 2024.  Sworn into the California Bar in 2017, Audrey is a graduate of the University of San Diego School of Law and is an attorney at Fisher Phillips LLP.  Audrey represents companies in a variety of employment disputes, conducts workplace investigations, and counsels her clients in developing effective policies and practices. Read More

Tips from the Bar: Carree Nahama, Esq.

Meet Carree Nahama, Esq.

Ever since the 6^th grade, Carree Nahama always wanted to be a lawyer. Ms. Nahama became the first in her family to attend and graduate from law school. While she had an initial interest in corporate law, she ultimately was drawn to civil litigation, specifically personal injury work. After interning at the Consumer and Environmental Protection Unit (CEPU) at the San Diego City Attorney’s office during law school, Ms. Nahama realized that “Torts had become [her] world.” Her experience at CEPU reinforced her interest in consumer rights litigation and eventually led her to start her own personal injury firm, Nahama Law. She has enjoyed a successful nine-year practice at Nahama Law, where she focuses one hundred percent (100%) on personal injury work involving car accidents, dog bites, civil rights, premise liability, brain injuries, injuries to children, and trucking accidents. Read More

Community Service Reflection: Annual Free Books for Children Event

As the Community Outreach Co-Chair for the San Diego County Bar Association’s New Lawyer Division (NLD), I am thrilled to share with you the heartwarming success of the recent annual Free Books for Children event held at Balboa Park’s Spreckels Organ Pavilion on April 27, 2024.  This event, organized in collaboration with Roosevelt Brown — a dedicated advocate for literacy — has been instrumental in our community for the past 40 years. Read More