Legal Ethics, Deontology and Professional Practice
Core concepts
Legal ethics in Angola is governed by the Statute of the Angolan Bar Association (Ordem dos Advogados de Angola) and the deontological code. Candidates must understand the duties of the lawyer: independence, confidentiality (professional secrecy), loyalty to the client, diligence, and respect for the courts and colleagues. Conflicts of interest must be avoided, and the lawyer may not accept a case against a former client on the same matter. Advertising and fee arrangements are regulated, and the lawyer may not share fees with non-lawyers.
Traps
A frequent trap is treating professional secrecy as limited to information received in confidence; it extends to all facts learned in the practice of the profession. Questions also confuse the duty of independence with the duty to obey the client: the lawyer must follow the client's legitimate instructions but not illegal ones. Watch for the rule that a lawyer may not act for both parties in the same transaction.
Rule of thumb
For any ethics question, test the conduct against legality, confidentiality, loyalty, and independence. If any of these is compromised, the conduct is unethical.
Worked example
A lawyer is asked by a new client to sue a former client on the same matter. The lawyer must decline, because the prior relationship creates a conflict of interest and risks breaching confidentiality.