This report will address several issues related to the law, lawyers and their conduct, and student athletes. After reviewing some of the duties owed by lawyers to their clients, specifically with regard to ethical conduct as described by the American Bar Association, the report will consider issues that law firms representing athletes in general must address. Next, the report will consider how and why these duties change (to the extent that they change) when the athlete is covered by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) rules governing amateur athletes. Finally, the report will consider what a law firm should know when the athlete is covered by the National Football league (NFL) and its regulatory system.
Lawyers are bound by Rules of Professional Conduct promulgated by the American bar Association that directly impact upon the ways in which they function professionally. Specifically, the client-lawyer relationship is impacted by Rule 1.1, Competence, which states that "a lawyer shall provide competent representation to a client. Competent representation requires the legal knowledge, skill, thoroughness and preparation reasonable necessary for the representation." With respect to representing athletes, lawyers must exhibit the same types of competencies which would be exhibited in working with any other client. Among those responsibilities are avoiding conflicts of interest, which is important because the American Bar Association requires lawyers to refrain from entering into business transactions with clients or knowingly acquiring an ownership, possessory, security, or other pecuniary interest relevant to a client unless certain circumstances exist.
Additionally, the American Bar Association requires that a lawyer not make agreements for, charge, or collect an unreasonable fee or an unreasonable amount for expenses. The factors to be considered when determining the reasonableness of a fee include t...