1. An attorney represented the wife in an
(B) No, because
acrimonious divorce proceeding involving
the pro- posed
issues of property divi- sion and child custody.
settlement restrict- ed
After one day of trial, the hus- the attorney's right to
band, through his lawyer, made a settlement offer. The represent the
wife in the
proposed settlement required that the wife's that it was
attorney agree not to represent the wife in any in the wife's
subsequent pro- ceeding, brought by either best interest
party, to modify or enforce the provisions of to accept the
the decree. The wife wanted to accept the offer, proposed
and her attorney reasonably believed that it settlement.
was in the wife's best interest to do so
because the settlement offer was better than 2. An
any potential award to the wife resulting experience
from the case going to judgment. d oil and
Consequently, the attorney recommended to gas
the wife that she accept the offer. developer
asked an
Was it proper for the wife's attorney to at- torney
recommend that the wife accept the to
settlement offer? represent
(A)No, because the attorney did not obtain him in a
the wife's informed consent to the conflict of suit to
interest created by the proposed settlement. establish
(B) No, because the proposed settlement the de-
restricted the attorney's right to represent the veloper's
wife in the future. ownership
(C) Yes, because the restriction on the of certain
attorney was lim- ited to subsequent oil and gas
proceedings in the same matter. royalties.
(D)Yes, because the attorney reasonably believed The
, MPRE Practice Questions With Verified Answers.
developer did not have available the future.
necessary
(D) No, because the
attor- ney may contract
with the developer for a
reasonable contingent
fee.
, MPRE Practice Questions With Verified Answers.
funds to pay the attorney's reasonable
hourly rate for undertaking the case and
proposed instead that, if he prevailed in the
lawsuit, he would pay the attorney 20% of the
first year's royalties recovered in the suit. Twenty
percent of the first year's royalties would likely
exceed the amount that the attorney would
have received from charging his regular
hourly rate. The attorney accepted the
proposal.
Is the attorney subject to discipline?
(A)Yes, because the agreement gave the
attorney a proprietary interest in the
developer's cause of action.
(B)Yes, because the fee was likely to exceed
the amount that the attorney would have
received from charging his regular hourly
rate.
(C) No, because the developer rather than the
attorney proposed the fee arrangement. (C) No, because the
(D)No, because the attorney may contract attor-
with the developer for a reasonable
contingent fee.
3. An attorney represents a company that
produces
chemical products. Some of the waste products of the ney
reasonably believed
company's manufacturing processes are highly toxic that the
company's dis-
and are reasonably certain to cause substantial bodily posal of the
waste prod-
, MPRE Practice Questions With Verified Answers.
harm if disposed of improperly. The ucts was reasonably
president of the company recently informed cer- tain to cause
the attorney that a new employee mistakenly substantial bodily
disposed of the waste products in the ground harm.
behind the company plant, an area that is
part of the source of the city's water supply.
The attorney advised the president that,
although the con- duct was not criminal, the
company could be civilly li- able for negligence
in lawsuits brought by any persons