I finished the Gibson reading long ago, so all that was left was Foonberg. He made some points about professional ethics and keeping client accounts separate from office accounts. Mostly, he mirrored what was already said in class. I also realized that the tone and repetition of the reading really bothers me, because it sounds so pompous. My aunt, a former editor for UC Press, speculates that Foonberg's book is a compilation of his speeches, and oral presentations don't read well.
Aside from that, I'm more conscious of professional conduct rules as I near the end of the semester. That line between friendship and professional is very weak. The difficulty is that as new attorneys, we'll be drawing clients from among friends and acquaintances. The relationship changes, but the expectations of our friends don't change accordingly. I'm having trouble again with R., who tells me that if I give seminars on X, that I must also be prepared to answer any follow-up telephone calls. She says friendship is a two-way street, and she thinks I'm mooching. I spent a second phone call with her responding to her quick question, because she didn't trust my first answer.
