No Facebook 'Friending,' After All These Years
Thus ends an ethical lesson that in retrospect was far too elongated, both for the attorney and the bar.
October 24, 2021 at 10:00 AM
4 minute read
In 2008, someone working for attorney John Robertelli "friended" a represented adversary party—a then-18-year-old personal injury plaintiff believed by counsel to be exaggerating his injuries—in order to gain access to his private photos and postings on his private Facebook page. Mr. Robertelli has steadfastly denied understanding that what he implicitly authorized was not available to the general public and thus may have been violation of Rule of Professional Conduct 4.2 and other rules. During years of hearings at the Office of Attorney Ethics (OAE), the Disciplinary Review Board (DRB), and through last month's decision of the New Jersey Supreme Court, Mr. Robertelli been characterized as either some sort of Luddite for failing to understand what "friending" means, or as someone who may have violated the ethical prohibitions against contacting a represented party.
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