All lawyers who employ non-lawyer assistants in the State of Indiana shall assure that such non-lawyer assistants conform their conduct to be consistent with the following ethical standards:
(a) A non-lawyer assistant may perform any task delegated and supervised by a lawyer so long as the lawyer is responsible to the client, maintains a direct relationship with the client, and assumes full professional responsibility for the work product. (b) A non-lawyer assistant shall not engage in the unauthorized practice of law. (c) A non-lawyer assistant shall serve the public interest by contributing to the delivery of quality legal services and the improvement of the legal system. (d) A non-lawyer assistant shall achieve and maintain a high level of competence, as well as a high level of personal and professional integrity and conduct. (e) A non-lawyer assistant's title shall be fully disclosed in all business and professional communications.(f) A non-lawyer assistant shall preserve all confidential information provided by the client or acquired from other sources before, during, and after the course of the professional relationship. (g) A non-lawyer assistant shall avoid conflicts of interest and shall disclose any possible conflict to the employer or client, as well as to the prospective employers or clients. (h) A non-lawyer assistant shall act within the bounds of the law, uncompromisingly for the benefit of the client. (i) A non-lawyer assistant shall do all things incidental, necessary, or expedient for the attainment of the ethics and responsibilities imposed by statute or rule of court. (j) A non-lawyer assistant shall be governed by the Indiana Rules of Professional Conduct.(k) For purposes of this Guideline, a non-lawyer assistant includes but shall not be limited to: paralegals, legal assistants, investigators, law students and paraprofessionals. Ind. R. Prof'l. Cond., Use of Non-lawyer Assistants, Guideline 9.10
Adopted effective 1/1/1994; amended Sep. 30, 2004, effective 1/1/2005.