As innovation reshapes the legal profession, ethical boundaries are being tested like never before. This CLE program examines how emerging technologies and evolving business models are challenging traditional rules—and raising urgent questions about professional responsibility.

Artificial intelligence is rapidly becoming a powerful tool in legal practice, with the potential to streamline tasks and enhance client service. But AI also introduces significant ethical concerns, particularly around competence, confidentiality, and accountability. Alex will address how lawyers can responsibly integrate AI into their practice—and where misuse could lead to ethical violations.

Meanwhile, changes to legal regulations in Utah and Arizona have opened the door to alternative business structures (ABS), enabling non-lawyers to hold ownership stakes in law firms. This has attracted private equity and third-party litigation funders, prompting both excitement and concern. We will explore the ethical implications of these developments, especially in light of the ABA’s continued opposition to profit-sharing with non-lawyers, and the Association of Professional Responsibility Lawyers’ proposal to modernize these rules.

From the promise of innovation to the pressure on long-held norms, this program will help attorneys navigate the evolving ethical landscape with clarity and caution.