Recorded Webinar: 3 CPD Compulsory Topics for Lawyers – a national webinar for lawyers

This webinar comprises 3 one-hour sessions covering each of the compulsory CPD subjects for lawyers for the CPD year ending 31 March 2022.

Session 1: Professional Skills

Should My Client Accept That Offer? Determining When To Settle And When To Keep Fighting

A prudent party should settle if (but only if) terms of settlement offer value which exceeds the value of the party’s litigation position. But without a methodology for the valuation of the litigation position, a party can’t make that assessment. This practical session provides a novel and practical methodology for the valuation of a party’s litigation position. It provide a valuable set of tools for solving that seemingly imponderable dilemma: should my client accept the offer on the table, or litigate? It covers:

• 3-step methodology for the overall valuation of a party's litigation position:
  • probability-weighted valuation of monetary claims and exposures
  • monetising the value of non-monetary ancillary advantages and disadvantages of litigation (eg, stress, opportunity cost, reputation damage)
  • monetising the value of the risk associated with the litigation
• The relevance of that methodology for determining a party’s “bottom line” – the worst offer the party should accept, in preference to litigation
• The relevance of the methodology to settlement and litigation strategy
• Practical case studies

Session 2: Practice Management Business Skills

Cyber Security: Managing Risk and Control in Your Legal Practice

No one wants to be the target of a cyber security attack. However, lawyers are particularly vulnerable and every practitioner has a professional obligation to be cyber safe. This session examines the key issues, including:

• Understanding your cyber security risk
• Why law firms are a constant target
• Some common threats explained and what practitioners should do to avoid a cyber attack when working from home
• Warning clients about cyber security risks
• Spotlight on work-from-home cyber security issues
• Key cyber security checklists from a firm audit perspective
• Consequences of a successful cyber-attack or data breach
• Case studies

Session 3: Legal Ethics

Calling it Quits: Practical and Ethical Dimensions of Ceasing to Act

At what point do you make the call to cease to act for a client? The practical and ethical issues ca be difficult to navigate, however this session steps you through the process. It covers:

• Understanding circumstances where a practitioner can and/or should cease to act for a client
• Navigating difficult or underperforming clients
• Importance of your retainer
• Civil Procedure rules regarding withdrawal of practitioner
• Some ethical dilemmas when ceasing to act:
  • when opposing a self-represented litigant
  • the duty lawyers have to the court
  • when case have been set for trial
  • other
• Ethical issues arising after ceasing to act
• When is it appropriate to discuss application for leave to file notice ceasing to act?
• Applications to file notice of ceasing to act – a jurisdictional review
• Which parties must be notified and in what form?
• Case studies