How lawyers can respond to online criticisms — both from clients and third parties — is being examined by the Professional Ethics Committee.

The committee, at its January 14 meeting as part of the Bar’s Winter Meeting, heard a report from a subcommittee looking at amendments to Bar Rule 4-1.6 on whether rule changes are needed to govern how lawyers may respond to online criticism from clients. The PEC also voted to ask that subcommittee to work on an ethics advisory opinion to counsel lawyers on responding to digital criticisms that come from non-clients.

The committee also heard that Ethics Opinion 20-1 has become final. That opinion also addresses responding to online criticism from clients and held that lawyers could not reveal information relating to the representation “but may respond with a general statement that the lawyer is not permitted to respond as the lawyer would wish, but that the online review is neither fair nor accurate.”