About David A. Lewis, Esq.

When a lawyer needs a lawyer, David is the ethics attorney to call. In all matters of legal ethics and professional responsibility, David provides attorneys and their firms practical advice on disciplinary exposure, risk management, and all aspects of the New York Bar admissions process.

An eminent authority on NY Attorney Grievance Committee complaints, the New York Rules of Professional Conduct, and the New York character and fitness requirements, David’s credentials include a three-year term as chair of the New York City Bar Association’s prestigious Professional Responsibility Committee. He has also served on the state level, with the New York State Bar Association’s Committee on Standards of Attorney Conduct (COSAC). These committees are at the vanguard of the legal ethics field, studying and recommending changes to rules and procedures that directly affect the practice of law.

David’s own practice reflects this experience. As a New York legal ethics lawyer, he represents law students, attorneys and firms wherever the Rules of Professional Conduct or bar admission are at issue– from representing client in character and fitness hearings and legal ethics consulting – from conflicts of interest to bar admission problems that require a waiver of strict compliance from the New York State Court of Appeals. He defends clients facing attorney grievance complaints, disqualification motions and a Notice of Charges from the New York State Board of Law Examiners.

David is quick to make the distinction between ethics and morality. He understands that one’s morals are not always an accurate guide to what the ethics rules proscribe. As an ethics attorney, David applies this distinction when advising lawyers and law school applicants in New York on matters such as NY Attorney Grievance Committee complaints or character fitness concerns.

To help lawyers grasp this distinction, David advises both outside and inside counsel – including Fortune 500 companies – on issues of ethical risk management. At his lectures and seminars, he teaches how to avoid disciplinary complaints and malpractice charges – to make sure engagement letters, conflict waivers, and other basic procedures are scrupulously executed in a way that reduces exposure. Prevention, to David, is always preferable to litigation.

David’s approach to legal ethics – a field known for its rigidity, is to keep an open mind. He prefers to think through his client’s entire situation, looking for other – possibly better – options than what is immediately evident when advising lawyers in New York.

For his clients – those lawyers, lawyers-to-be, and firms that may have strayed from the rules, thereby putting their careers and businesses at risk – David’s thorough and carefully considered approach provides the guidance that puts those clients on the right track.

Legal Ethics Spokesperson

As one of the top legal ethics lawyers in New York, David serves as a spokesperson providing the press with interviews and quotes on a wide range of general legal ethics matters. Given the sensitivity of the practice area, David cannot always speak with journalists about every specific topic in the news. However, David is known for his willingness to collaborate under tight deadlines with reporters who want a fresh practical perspective for their readers.

Legal Ethics Presenter

As a nationally recognized legal ethics speaker, David has been called upon to participate in programs across the country that address complex legal ethics and compliance issues. These ethics programs include events sponsored by: the Practicing Law Institute, the American Bar Association, the New York State Bar Association, the New York City Bar Association, the New York County Lawyers’ Association, the Association for Professional Responsibility Lawyers, Fortune 500 companies and various national law firms. David has also been honored to serve as an adjunct law professor teaching legal ethics and professional responsibility at Cardozo Law School.

Selected Past Program Topics

• Technology and Risk Management for Law Firms
• Legal Ethics for Litigators
• Risk Management: What Every In-House Counsel Needs to Know
• Litigation Financing
• Ethical Pitfalls for Young Lawyers
• Legal Ethics for Law Firm Administrators
• Legal Ethics and Pro Bono Representations
• Litigation Conduct Issues Associated With “Overly” Zealous Advocacy
• Process and Procedure: Implementing New Law Firm Initiatives
• The Ethics of International Practice
• Ethical Considerations in the Use of Social Media

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