Link: Legal Technology - The Dangers of Virtual Cocktail Parties.
The Internet is changing everything. The wide proliferation of what is said on the Internet is greatly expanding the liability risks of the things attorneys do. For example, in the old days, the "innocent" legal question asked at an event, such as a banquet or cocktail party, could create an attorney-client relationship and that could create a liability risk for the attorney. Internet chat rooms, relationship sites like LinkedIn and others, and just ordinary email, must be handled with care when dealing with strangers. I always refused to give legal advice in a social setting; I handed the questioner my card, and advised them to call for an appointment. Only in the office setting will you be able to think clearly and solicit all the factual information you need to give legal advice. Oh, yes, and to get paid. If you are taking the legal risk of giving legal advice, please get paid for it. Actually, does anybody even go to cocktail parties anymore? I have been a designated driver for so long, I wouldn't know. I have a vision of millions of chat room denizens, with martini in hand, clicking away dangerous questions in front of a computer screen. Casual legal advice over the Internet? Just don't.