职业行为准则

规则1.14:容量减少的客户

 (a) When a client’s capacity to make adequately considered decisions in connection with a representation is diminished, 是否因为少数民族, 精神损伤或者其他原因, 澳博app应当, 尽可能地, 与客户保持典型的客户-澳博app关系.
   (b)当澳博app有理由相信委托人已丧失行为能力时, 有严重的身体危险吗, 除非采取行动否则会造成经济或其他损失 and cannot adequately act in the client’s own interest, 澳博app可以采取合理必要的保护措施, including consulting with individuals or entities that 有 the ability to take action to protect the client and, 在适当的情况下, 寻求任命代理决策者.
   (c) Information relating to the representation of a client with diminished capacity is protected by 规则1.6. 根据(b)段采取保护行动时, 该澳博app根据规则1获得默示授权.6(a)披露客户信息, 但仅限于保护客户利益的合理必要范围内.

评论

   [1]典型的客户-澳博app关系是基于这样一个假设:客户, 在适当的建议和协助下, 是否有能力对重要的事情做出决定. 当当事人是未成年人或精神能力下降时, 然而, 维持普通的客户-澳博app关系可能在所有方面都是不可能的. In particular, a severely incapacitated person may 有 no power to make legally binding decisions. 不过, 能力下降的病人通常有理解的能力, 深思熟虑后, 并得出影响客户自身健康的结论. 例如, 孩子们只有五六岁, 当然还有十岁或十二岁的孩子, are regarded as having opinions that are entitled to weight in legal proceedings concerning their custody. 所以也, it is recognized that some persons of advanced age can be quite capable of handling routine financial matters while needing special legal protection concerning major transactions. 很多有智力障碍的人, 但却没有足够的能力做出有约束力的决定, 有, 并且能够表达, 对影响他们生活的各种问题的看法.
   [2] The fact that a client suffers a disability does not diminish the lawyer’s obligation to treat the client with attention and respect. 即使这个人有一个代理决策者, 澳博app应当尽可能赋予被代理人委托人的地位, 特别是在保持沟通方面. “Surrogate decision-maker” denotes an individual or entity appointed by a court or otherwise authorized by law to make important decisions on behalf of an individual who lacks capacity to make decisions in one or more significant areas of his or her life. 术语“代理决策者”包括, 但不限于, 诉讼监护人, 全权或有限的监护人或监护人, 代理决策者, 或其他法定代表人.
   [3]客户可能希望有家庭成员, 躺倡导者, 或者其他人员参加与澳博app的讨论. 必要时协助代理, the presence of such persons generally does not affect the applicability of the attorney-client evidentiary privilege. 不过, 澳博app必须把委托人的利益放在首位, (b)段授权的保护行动除外, 一定要看客户吗, 而不是家庭成员或其他人, 代表客户作出决定.
   [4]如果已经为客户指定了代理决策者, 澳博app通常应该指望这个人代表客户作出决定. 涉及未成年人的案件, whether the lawyer should look to the parents as natural guardians may depend on the type of proceeding or matter in which the lawyer is representing the minor. 无论哪种情况, 澳博app应尽可能与被代理人协商, 如上文评论[2]所示.

采取保护措施
   [5]如果澳博app有理由相信当事人有遭受严重身体伤害的危险, 除非采取行动否则会造成经济或其他损失, and that a typical client-lawyer relationship cannot be maintained as provided in paragraph (a) because the client lacks sufficient capacity to communicate or to make adequately considered decisions in connection with the representation, 然后(b)款允许澳博app采取认为必要的保护措施. 这些措施可包括:与家庭成员协商, 利用复议期来澄清或改善情况, 使用自愿替代决策工具，如持久授权书, 或者向支持团体咨询, 专业服务, adult-protective agencies or other individuals or entities that 有 the ability to protect the client. 采取任何保护措施, the lawyer should be guided by such factors as the wishes and values of the client to the extent known, 客户的最大利益, 目标是在可行的最小程度上侵犯客户的决策自主权, 最大限度地发挥客户的能力，尊重客户的家庭和社会关系.
   [6]在确定客户能力下降的程度时, the lawyer should consider and balance such factors as: the client’s ability to articulate reasoning leading to a decision, 心理状态的变化, 理解决策后果的能力, 判决的实质公平性, 决策与客户已知的长期承诺和价值观的一致性. 在适当的情况下，澳博app可以向适当的诊断专家寻求指导.
   [7]如果客户没有代理决策者, the lawyer should consider whether the appointment of a surrogate decision-maker is necessary to protect the client’s interests. 因此, if a client with diminished capacity has substantial property that should be sold for the client’s benefit, 交易的有效完成可能需要指定代理决策者. 除了, rules of procedure in litigation sometimes provide that minors or persons with diminished capacity must be represented by a guardian or next friend if they do not 有 a general guardian. 在很多情况下, 然而, 任命至少某些类型的代理决策者可能会更加昂贵, 侵入性的, 或者对当事人造成的创伤超出了实际情况的要求. Evaluation of such circumstances is a matter entrusted to the professional judgment of the lawyer. 在考虑替代方案时, 然而, the lawyer should advocate on behalf of the client the least restrictive form of intervention in the client’s decision-making.

客户条件的披露
   [8]披露委托人能力下降可能会对委托人的利益产生不利影响. 例如, 提出产能减少的问题可能, 在某些情况下, 导致非自愿承诺的诉讼. 与陈述有关的资料受规则1保护.6. 因此，除非获得授权，澳博app不得披露此类信息. 根据(b)段采取保护行动时, 澳博app被默示授权进行必要的披露, 即使客户要求澳博app反对. 不过, 考虑到信息披露的风险, paragraph (c) limits what the lawyer may disclose in consulting with other individuals or entities or 寻求任命代理决策者. 至少, the lawyer should determine whether it is likely that the person or entity consulted with will act adversely to the client’s interests before discussing matters related to the client. 澳博app在这类案件中的处境不可避免地是困难的.

紧急法律援助
   [9]在紧急情况下，健康, safety or a financial interest of a person with seriously diminished capacity is threatened with imminent and irreparable harm, a lawyer may take legal action on behalf of such a person even though the person is unable to establish a client-lawyer relationship or to make or express considered judgments about the matter, when the person or another acting in good faith on that person’s behalf has consulted with the lawyer. 即使在如此紧急的情况下, 然而, the lawyer should not act unless the lawyer reasonably believes that the person has no other lawyer, 代理或其他可用代表. The lawyer should take legal action on behalf of the person only to the extent reasonably necessary to maintain the status quo or otherwise avoid imminent and irreparable harm. A lawyer who undertakes to represent a person in such an exigent situation has the same duties under these 规则 as the lawyer would with respect to a client.
   [10] A lawyer who acts on behalf of a person with seriously diminished capacity in an emergency should keep the confidences of the person as if dealing with a client, 仅在完成预期保护措施所必需的程度上披露它们. The lawyer should disclose to any tribunal involved and to any other counsel involved the nature of his or her relationship with the person. The lawyer should take steps to regularize the relationship or implement other protective solutions as soon as possible. 通常情况下，澳博app不会为所采取的这种紧急行动要求赔偿.