Q. I am an employed solicitor in the public sector. There is the possibility that my union will be involved in strike action in the near future and I am unsure about the implications for those of us in the legal department who are practising solicitors. Are we at risk of disciplinary sanction if we go out on strike?

A. Principle 4.06 of The Guide to the Professional Conduct of Solicitors, 1999, eighth edition states: 'It is not improper for an employed solicitor to take strike or other industrial action, but the solicitor must have regard to his or her duties to the court and third parties.'


The accompanying notes make it clear that the solicitor must take steps to mitigate the effect that his or her absence is likely to have on clients and others. You must ensure that your employer is not disadvantaged in a crucial way, for example, by a failure to comply with a time limit. The same goes for any other client for whom you are acting in accordance with the Employed Solicitors' Code 1990.


Anyone who might be affected by the proposed industrial action will need timely advance notification of what is planned. If you are a litigator or an advocate, you must ensure that measures are put in hand to cover all court engagements while you are not working. If you have given any undertakings which are ongoing, you must ensure that your absence will not lead to a breach, for example, because you cannot meet a deadline.


Telephone hotline


The professional ethics lines are open for general enquiries between 11am and 1pm, and 2pm and 4pm. The lines are less busy in the afternoon. It takes emergency calls outside these hours, tel: 0870 606 2577.


Question of ethics is compiled by the Law Society's professional ethics guidance team. Send questions for publication to Austin O'Malley, the Law Society, Ipsley Court, Berrington Close, Redditch B98 0TD; DX 19114 Redditch