Law Firm Partners as Their Brothers' Keepers

Abstract

Law firm principals - whether denominated as partners or shareholders - have a professional duty to reasonably ensure that their peers conform their behavior to rules of professional conduct. Their appreciation of this duty, however, is uncertain. Furthermore, law firm principals' duty to supervise their peers, or to take reasonable measures to ensure their supervision, has largely escaped scholarly attention. This article is intended to remedy that deficiency. In doing so, it examines the sources and contours' of partners' supervisory duties. It then discusses law firms' common structural approaches to satisfying partners' supervisory obligations.