Elder Law
This Elder Law Library Guide seeks to assist patrons at NSU Shepard Broad College of Law as a starting point for initial research in elder law.
Professional Responsibility Library Guide
General Information about Professional Responsibility
Introduction
"Ethical problems abound in the practice of Elder Law because of unique issues concerning the identity of the client, frequent questions concerning the client's capacity, a high level of family involvement, and the fact that much of the work of the Elder Law Attorney deals with money and who gets it and how." JEROME IRA SOLKOFF & SCOTT M. SOLKOFF, FLORIDA ELDER LAW §3 (2023-2024 ed.)
Below please find a list of helpful resources related to professional responsibility related to elder law.
Academy of Florida Elder Law Attorneys
American Bar Association
Florida Courts: E-Filing Portal
National Center on Elder Abuse
Sunethics
Topics: Professional Responsibility and Legal Ethics in Elder Law
Although this is not an exhaustive of every topic under the sun within professional responsibility and legal ethics in elder law, below please find an initial list of topics.
- Client Identification;
- Communication;
- Competence;
- Confidentiality;
- Conflicts of Interests.
Selected Electronic Secondary Sources on LexisNexis and Westlaw
- AI and Legal Ethics on Westlaw;
- Legal Ethics/Professional Responsibility Practice Center on LexisNexis;;
- Elder Law Advisor on Westlaw;
- Elder Law: Advocacy for the Aging - Ch. 3 Ethical Issues in Elder Law Practice - on Westlaw;
- Elder Law and Financial Strategies: Planning for Later Life - 3. Ethical Concerns - on LexisNexis;
- Estate Planning for the Aging or Incapacitated Client on LexisNexis;
- Florida Elder Law (Practice Series) - Ch. 3 Ethical Duties - on Westlaw;
- Koren: Estate, Tax, and Personal Financial Planning on Westlaw;
- Planning for the Elderly in Florida - Chapter 2. Ethical Considerations in an Elder Law Practice - on LexisNexis.
Selected Electronic Resources on Aspen Learning Library
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Examples & Explanations for Professional Responsibility, 7th ed.
by
The Seventh Edition of Examples & Explanations for Professional Responsibility is a thorough and comprehensive text that can be used by students as a study aid and by professional responsibility teachers as a class text. It covers the whole field of professional responsibility, focusing not only on the ABA Model Rules, but on the often-complex relationship between the rules and doctrines of agency, tort, contract, evidence, and constitutional law.
Beginning with the formation of the attorney-client relationship, the book proceeds through topics including attorneys’ fees, malpractice and ineffective assistance of counsel, confidentiality and privilege rules, conflicts of interest, witness perjury and litigation misconduct, advertising and solicitation, admission to practice, and the organization of the legal profession. Coverage includes all subjects that are tested on the Multistate Professional Responsibility Exam (MPRE), including judicial ethics, a subject tested on the MPRE and not often covered thoroughly, if at all, in law school professional responsibility courses; the ABA's simplification of the rules on advertising and solicitation; Model Rule 8.4(g) on discrimination in the practice of law; the California Supreme Court's Sheppard Mullin opinion on advance waivers of conflicts, and continuing developments in the impact of technology on the practice of law.
New to the Seventh Edition:
Expanded coverage of developments in the law having to do with lawyering, including ABA rules, ethics opinions, and cases
New and revised examples and explanations in many chapters
Top-to-bottom comprehensive revision and updates of all areas of professional responsibility, with attention to areas that are particularly challenging for students (as well as many practicing lawyers!), such as conflicts of interest and privilege and confidentiality
Professors and students will benefit from:
A study aid that, without "teaching to the test," provides students with thorough preparation for the MPRE, which is the first licensing exam that many law students take
MPRE-style multiple-choice questions in the Examples
The depth and sophistication of the coverage.
Call Number: OnlineISBN: 9781543846188Publication Date: January 19, 2024 -
Glannon Guide to Professional Responsibility
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Law school classroom lectures can leave you with a lot of questions.
Glannon Guides can help you better understand your classroom lecture with straightforward explanations of tough concepts with hypos that help you understand their application.
The Glannon Guide is your proven partner throughout the semester when you need a supplement to (or substitute for) classroom lecture. Here’s why you need to use Glannon Guides to help you better understand what is being taught in the classroom:
It mirrors the classroom experience by teaching through explanation, interspersed with hypotheticals to illustrate application.
Both correct and incorrect answers are explained; you learn why a solution does or does not work.
Glannon Guides provide straightforward explanations of complex legal concepts, often in a humorous style that makes material stick.
Call Number: OnlineISBN: 9781543859058Publication Date: June 5, 2023 -
Emanuel Law Outlines for Professional Responsibility
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The most trusted name in law school outlines, Emanuel Law Outlines support your class preparation, provide reference for your outline creation, and supply a comprehensive breakdown of topic matter for your entire study process. Created by Steven Emanuel, these course outlines have been relied on by generations of law students. Each title includes both capsule and detailed versions of the critical issues and key topics you must know to master the course. Also included are exam questions with model answers, an alpha-list of cases, and a cross reference table of cases for all of the leading casebooks. Emanuel Law Outline Features: #1 outline choice among law students Comprehensive review of all major topics Capsule summary of all topics Cross-reference table of cases Time-saving format Great for exam prep.
Call Number: OnlineISBN: 9781543819977Publication Date: December 31, 2019
Selected Electronic Resources on LexisNexis Digital Library
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Basic Estate Planning In Florida, 12th ed.
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This popular manual covers all facets of basic estate planning. Tax and accounting issues, ethical issues, and problems related to specific forms of ownership and special classes of persons are examined. Homestead considerations and handling of assets acquired in community property jurisdictions are also featured.
Call Number: OnlineISBN: 9781663394866Publication Date: December 10, 2024 -
Compendium of Professional Responsibility Rules and Standards
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The Compendium presents models for ethical and professional conduct and standards for enforcing that conduct that have been developed by the American Bar Association. These models have been used as the foundation for most state regulations and as interpretive guidance for the courts in their resolution of professional responsibility issues. Despite the local variations in the way they have been adopted (occasionally significant), they serve to familiarize the reader with the philosophy of lawyer regulation and can be used to initiate review of substantive issues unfamiliar to the lawyer, student or scholar.
In addition, the Compendium contains a selection of federal Rules and Standards that are commonly needed in the general practice of law, and in practice before the SEC and IRS, and that impact upon a number of ethical rules of conduct, such as the rules regarding competence and meritorious claims and contentions. Information on the composition, jurisdiction and procedures of the ABA Standing Committee on Ethics and Professional Responsibility is included to explain how ABA ethics rules are formulated and interpreted. The 2023 Edition includes newly released ethics opinions.
This one volume includes:
ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct
ABA Model Code of Professional Responsibility
ABA Model Code of Judicial Conduct
ABA Canons of Professional Ethics
ABA Standards for Imposing Lawyer Sanctions
ABA Model Rules Related to Multijurisdictional Practice
ABA Model Rules for Client Protection (Selected)
ABA Professionalism Codes and Creeds
ABA Practice Guidelines, Federal Rules and Standards (Selected)
ABA Formal Ethics Opinions (Selected)
Call Number: OnlineISBN: 9781639054077Publication Date: December 23, 2024 -
Ethics in the Practice of Elder Law, 1st ed.
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In an elder law practice, ethical issues can occur at any point in the representation, and in some cases these unexpected situations can take the attorney by surprise. Ethics in the Practice of Elder Law provides an informed overview of the most common issues that can occur, explains the issues that can arise and how to be alert for them, and suggest ways to work through these issues effectively and ethically. Authors Roberta K. Flowers and Rebecca C. Morgan offer a range of hypothetical situations, along with a series opening questions for each, followed by a discussion/suggestions for analyzing and responding to the issue. These discussions offer a reliable framework for analyzing the ethical questions within the scope of the Model Rules and ancillary resources. The authors give readers the knowledge to determine which questions to ask in the representation. They refer to and discuss the 9 "C s" of elder law ethics: • Competency: where to find guidance • Client: who is the client • Confidentiality: keeping confidences • Conflicts of interest: who can the elder law attorney represent • Capacity: representing clients who have diminished capacity • Control: representing guardians • Complex fiduciary representation • Consulting: litigation issues in an elder law practice • Competition: ancillary practices and marketing Ethics in the Practice of Elder Law provides invaluable information as appendices, including the National Academy of Elder Law (NAELA) Aspirational Standards, relevant ABA ethics opinions, and a range of supplemental resources, checklists, and letters.
Call Number: OnlineISBN: 9781614386858Publication Date: July 9, 2014 -
Mastering Elder Law, 3rd ed.
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Mastering Elder Law explores concerns that commonly arise when representing the elderly client. The book focuses on public benefits, retirement systems, age discrimination, wealth transfers and simple estate planning through use of probate and non-probate assets, medical decision making (including "the right to die"), guardianships and conservatorships, supported decision making, durable powers of attorney, long-term care, housing, various forms of elder abuse, and the many ethical concerns that can appear when representing elders or their fiduciaries. The book also explores overarching themes such as the tension that results when the state simultaneously attempts to protect its vulnerable citizens and promote their autonomy.
Examples are included throughout, as well as a straightforward description of complex topics such as Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid.
The third edition examines recent developments in case law, administrative rules and regulations, and federal and state statutes affecting the elderly. Among the new topics discussed are the Uniform Health-Care Decisions Act of 2023; the Uniform Guardianship, Conservatorship, and Other Protective Arrangements Act of 2017; Social Security changes for married couples and certain unmarried couples; SSI in-kind support and maintenance calculation changes; retirement fund developments under the SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022; changes in Medicare and Medicaid coverage; ethical considerations discussed in The ACTEC Commentaries on the Model Rules of Professional Conduct (2023); and important decisions by the United States Supreme Court.
Call Number: OnlineISBN: 9781531032098Publication Date: June 25, 2025
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Model Rules of Professional Conduct, 2025 ed.
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Model Rules of Professional Conduct, 2024 Edition, is the resource for current information on lawyer ethics. Federal, state, and local courts in all jurisdictions look to the Rules for guidance in resolving lawyer malpractice cases, disciplinary actions, disqualification issues, sanctions questions, and much more.
Call Number: OnlineISBN: 9781639055999Publication Date: June 4, 2025
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Undue Influence and Vulnerable Adults
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Age-related issues, including diminished capacity, can be a significant indicator of the potential vulnerability of a client to undue influence, and also an indicator that our population as a whole is aging. Elder abuse has been called ""the crime of the 21st century."" Undue influence is a form of financial abuse of the elderly, with the large number of reported cases and estimated $1.17 billion in damages just the tip of the iceberg.
Looking at the topic from a legal perspective, Undue Influence and Vulnerable Adults addresses both the role and the importance of the attorney when representing a vulnerable adult. The book's authors, who each command extensive experience in the area, explain the relevant considerations and provide strategies when litigation is required. Their practical and legal advice on issues will assist planners identify issues and then create effective plans for vulnerable adults that may better withstand attack.
Undue Influence and Vulnerable Adults also helps readers understand the options and potential consequences of proactive waivers and permissions for release of information as well as the potential importance of being able to initiate contact with family or other trusted advisors when concerns about capacity and/or undue influence subsequently arise. In addition, the authors provide strategies from a litigation perspective on handling efforts to invalidate as well as defend instruments claimed to be the result of undue influence.
Call Number: OnlineISBN: 9781641056175Publication Date: April 10, 2020
Selected Electronic Resources on West Academic Study Aids
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Elder Law in a Nutshell, 8th ed.
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This edition incorporates all significant statutory changes since 2019, including the SECURE Act of December 2019, the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, and the SECURE Act 2.0 of December 2022 regarding pension plan distributions, Medicare, and income taxation, as well as other areas.
Call Number: OnlineISBN: 9798887863368Publication Date: September 20, 2023 -
Legal Ethics, Professional Responsibility, and the Legal Profession
by
As the legal profession undergoes structural changes, longstanding principles of ethics still govern the day-to-day lives of practicing lawyers. This new Hornbook on professional responsibility provides both a snapshot of ongoing systemic changes and a thorough examination of the fundamentals of lawyer and judicial ethics. As a multi-dimensional work by scholarly experts in several fields, the Hornbook (1) begins with the changing environment in which legal services are provided in the modern economy; (2) continues with a theoretical grounding of legal ethics in moral philosophy; (3) offers empirical evidence and discussion about professional formation and moral development; (4) provides a comprehensive analysis of the law of lawyer ethics; (5) includes a rich discussion of the modern law of legal malpractice, and (6) concludes with exploration of the rules of judicial ethics.
Call Number: OnlineISBN: 9781634605113Publication Date: June 9, 2018 -
Legal Ethics in a Nutshell, 5th ed.
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Many law professors aim to probe deep ethical issues in class. But they also need to cover the material that the Multistate Professional Responsibility Examination requires. The Rotunda Nutshell fulfils that need as it digests the Model Rules in an engaging, analytical, and often critical way. In a surprisingly pithy manner, this book places the Rules in an historic context that lets the student understand problems with prior versions of the Rules, which led to the present version. The Nutshell also analyzes the American Law Institute's Restatement of the Law Governing Lawyers, Third. This approach frees up precious class time for important normative issues. And, this Nutshell helps your students come up with better answers to your Socratic questions than you anticipated. This book has proved so popular as an explanation of the basic principles of legal ethics that it has been translated into Japanese and used there to teach American legal ethics.
Call Number: OnlineISBN: 9781640205970Publication Date: April 11, 2018 -
A Short and Happy Guide to Professional Responsibility, 1st ed.
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This Short & Happy Guide explains PR so that the Rules are remembered, not memorized. Key PR concepts are taught by grouping the Rules into 21 easily digestible concepts labeled “Anchors,” reinforced with numerous true to life examples in the “Tell and Shows,” and then summed up through actionable take home points in “Anchors Aweigh.” The illustrations employ visual learning in spotlighting core PR ideas. Whether studying for a PR final, or preparing for the MPRE, or simply needing a PR refresher, the Short & Happy Guide provides an enjoyable, engaging, and fulfilling read.
Call Number: OnlineISBN: 9798887866055Publication Date: November 18, 2024
Selected Print Secondary Sources
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Ethics and Professional Responsibility for Paralegals
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With complete coverage of the ethical principles that inform the role of the paralegal, Ethics and Professional Responsibility for Paralegals, Eighth Edition is ideal for use as either a primary course book, or a supplementary text. An authoritative presentation combined with clear and readable pedagogy enriches all levels of inquiry into the ethics of legal practice.
Call Number: KF320.L4 C37 2018ISBN: 9781454873372Publication Date: September 12, 2017 -
Ethics in the Practice of Elder Law
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Where to go for guidance -- Who is the client? -- Who can I talk to? -- Who can I represent? -- Representing clients who may have diminished capactiy -- Who can I represent : ethical issues in a guardianship practice -- Whom do I represent in complex fiduciary representation? -- To litigate or not to litigate : that is the question -- Ancillary services and marketing.
Call Number: KF390.A4 F59 2013ISBN: 798923935Publication Date: 2013
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Florida Elder Law, 2007 ed.
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A practice guide for Florida Elder Law.
Call Number: KFF91.A3 S66ISBN: 9781531016142Publication Date: 2007
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Florida Law of Trusts, 2022-2023 ed.
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Practice series about Florida law of trusts.
Call Number: KFF 137.F56 2022ISBN: 9781539293941Publication Date: May 2022
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Professional Responsibility, 2023-2024
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Manual designed to aid in the practice of estate planning in Florida.
Call Number: KF306 .P764 2023ISBN: 9781685617318Publication Date: 2023
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Professional Responsibility, Standards, Rules and Statutes, Abridged, 2019-2020
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This volume includes the Annotated American Bar Association Model Rules of Professional Conduct, selected state modifications to the ABA Model Rules, the California Rules of Professional Conduct (including the new California Rules, effective November 2018), the New York's Code of Professional Responsibility, the ABA Model Code of Professional Responsibility, the ABA Canons of Professional Ethics, the ABA Model Code of Judicial Conduct, the federal rules of judicial conduct and judicial disability proceedings, and rules of evidence and procedure that affect the legal profession.
Call Number: KF305.A3 2019ISBN: 9781684672233Publication Date: August 16, 2019
Florida Bar Rules and Standards
Florida Rules of Procedure
Legal Ethics Statutes and Legislation
Professional Responsibility and Legal Ethics Cases
Selected Electronic Secondary Sources on LexisNexis and Westlaw
- AI and Legal Ethics on Westlaw;
- Legal Ethics/Professional Responsibility Practice Center on LexisNexis;
- Elder Law Advisor on Westlaw;
- Elder Law: Advocacy for the Aging - Ch. 3 Ethical Issues in Elder Law Practice - on Westlaw;
- Elder Law and Financial Strategies: Planning for Later Life - 3. Ethical Concerns - on LexisNexis;
- Estate Planning for the Aging or Incapacitated Client on LexisNexis;
- Florida Elder Law (Practice Series) - Ch. 3 Ethical Duties - on Westlaw;
- Koren: Estate, Tax, and Personal Financial Planning on Westlaw;
- Planning for the Elderly in Florida - Chapter 2. Ethical Considerations in an Elder Law Practice - on LexisNexis.
Legal Ethics Statutes and Legislation on LexisNexis
Professional Responsibility and Legal Ethics Cases on LexisNexis and Westlaw
Selected Audio Resource on Aspen Learning Library
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Professional Responsibility: In Other Words Audio Series
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The audio files from the In Other Words series cover fundamental topics in law. Each lecture is written and presented by a law professor or legal practitioner. In these Professional Responsibility lectures, W. Bradley Wendel explains the topics of Candor of the Tribunal, Attorney-Client Privilege and Work Product Doctrine, Concurrent Conflicts of Interest, Confidentiality, Formation of Attorney-Client Relationship, Imputations of Conflict, Miscellaneous Conflicts, Organization as Client, Prospective Clients, and Successive Conflicts of Interest.
Call Number: OnlineISBN: 9781543823936Publication Date: February 6, 2020
Selected Audio Resources on West Academic Study Aid
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Office Hours on Professional Responsibility
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Gain the advantages of office hours with professors on your own schedule! The West Academic Office Hours series is a collection of short audio and video tracks that tackle some of the thorniest questions plaguing law students. The professors answer students’ most frequently asked office hour questions. With clear and easy-to-understand explanations, these professors will help you reach that “lightbulb” moment of comprehension, just as they have with their own students in their own offices. You now have virtual faculty explanations available at the click of a button! The Office Hours series features a variety of notable law faculty explaining these tough topics in new and thoughtful ways.
Call Number: OnlinePublication Date: August 20, 2020
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Office Hours on Professional Responsibility, 1st ed.
by
Gain the advantages of office hours with professors on your own schedule! The West Academic Office Hours series is a collection of short audio and video tracks that tackle some of the thorniest questions plaguing law students. The professors answer students’ most frequently asked office hour questions. With clear and easy-to-understand explanations, these professors will help you reach that “lightbulb” moment of comprehension, just as they have with their own students in their own offices. You now have virtual faculty explanations available at the click of a button! The Office Hours series features a variety of notable law faculty explaining these tough topics in new and thoughtful ways.
Call Number: OnlinePublication Date: July 30, 2022
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Law School Legends Audio on Professional Responsibility, 11th ed.
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The Professional Responsibility audio lecture explains regulation of attorneys, bar admission, unauthorized practice, competency, discipline, judgment, layer-client relationship, representation, and withdrawal. It also discusses conflicts, disqualification, clients, client interests, successive and effective representation, integrity, candor, confidences, secrets, and past and future crimes. Other topics include perjury, communications, witnesses, jurors, the court, the press, trial tactics, prosecutors, market, solicitation, advertising, law firms, fees, client property, conduct, and political activity.
Call Number: OnlinePublication Date: June 15, 2016
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Sum and Substance Audio on Professional Responsibility, 2nd ed.
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This audio lecture allows you to assimilate the essentials of the professional responsibility course at your convenience - listen while working, commuting, exercising or just relaxing. The information and ideas you struggled with previously are now brought to life simply and succinctly. The audio also provides exam tips to maximize your performance. This audio lecture is time saving, convenient and effective.
Call Number: OnlinePublication Date: February 9, 2017
Selected Video Resource on Aspen Learning Library
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Professional Responsibility: In Other Words Video Series
by
The videos from the In Other Words series cover fundamental topics in law. Each lecture is written and presented by a law professor or legal practitioner. In these Professional Responsibility lectures, W. Bradley Wendel explains the topics of Candor of the Tribunal, Attorney-Client Privilege and Work Product Doctrine, Concurrent Conflicts of Interest, Confidentiality, Formation of Attorney-Client Relationship, Imputations of Conflict, Miscellaneous Conflicts, Organization as Client, Prospective Clients, and Successive Conflicts of Interest.
Call Number: OnlineISBN: 9781543824148
Additional Resources
American Bar Association
Blogs
CALI Lessons on Professional Responsibility
- The CALI Professional Responsibility Outline allows you to search for terms of art that correspond to topics you are studying to find related CALI Lessons.
- The CALI Index about Professional Responsibility lists CALI lessons about Professional Responsibility.
Library Guides
- Florida State University: Florida General and Solo Practice: Florida Ethics Resources;
- Florida State University: Professional Responsibility;
- Georgetown Law Library: Legal Ethics and Legal Profession Research Guide;
- Pace Law Library Guide: Legal Ethics and Professional Responsibility Research: ABA Rules and Resources;
- Rutgers Law School: Legal Ethics Research Guide: ABA/ALI Sources;
- University of Washington Law Library: Professional Responsibility.