Lived and Learned: Ask for help when you have an ethics quandary, says Lucian Pera

If you’re working on a client matter and get even the slightest sense that something you’re doing may cause problems down the road, ask another lawyer about it, says Lucian Pera, the chair of the ABA Center for Professional Responsibility's coordinating council.

Everyone, including lawyers, are often not objective about work that could lead to problems, says Pera, a Memphis, Tennessee, partner at Adams and Reese who frequently advises attorneys on professional responsibility rules. Pera is also a former ABA treasurer, the immediate-past president of the Tennessee Bar Association, and past president of the Association of Professional Responsibility Lawyers.

“None of us—and this is not just lawyers—are really objective about our own matters,” Pera says.

“I want them to call me when the slightest little tingle goes up the back of their neck that maybe there’s a problem.”

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Stephanie Francis Ward
Lucian T. Pera is a partner with Adams and Reese in Memphis, Tennessee. He focuses his practice on commercial litigation, media law, and legal ethics work. He is the chair of the ABA Center for Professional Responsibility’s coordinating council. Pera is also a former ABA treasurer, the immediate-past president of the Tennessee Bar Association, and past president of the Association of Professional Responsibility Lawyers.