Q: Someone I know hired a defense attorney to fight a domestic violence arrest.
After hiring the attorney, he found out that the attorney is friends on Facebook with the mother of his child, the person the alleged domestic violence was against and not only is he friends with her, but after being hired, he was "liking" pictures on her page. He knew her name after talking with the client & definitely knew she was a Facebook friend as evidenced by his acknowledging her photos AFTER being hired. I feel this is a direct conflict of interest. My question is should the person who hired him be entitled to a refund of charges in order to obtain other legal counsel? And should the bar association be told about this? Thank you.
A: I think it's fair for your friend to confront the attorney about this, and provide an opportunity to explain. Many people have Facebook friends who they don't really know, and like pictures that pop up on the timeline with no regard to who is posting. It could be innocent; it could be a conflict. The lawyer is in the best position to explain that. Certainly regardless of the explanation, your friend may wish to obtain other legal counsel. But he should make that determination after talking with the attorney about his concerns.
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