Duties to the Court and the Administration of Justice
The overriding duty
The foundational rule is that a solicitor's duty to the court and to the administration of justice prevails over any duty to the client. This is not a tie-breaker to be weighed against client loyalty; it is a hierarchy. The practitioner must not mislead the court, must correct any inadvertent misleading promptly, and must not present evidence or make submissions the practitioner knows to be false.
Core concepts
Candidates should understand: the duty of candour in ex parte applications (full and frank disclosure of all material facts, including adverse authority); the prohibition on coaching a witness to give false evidence; the duty to disclose relevant authority, including authority against the client's position; the rule against communicating with a represented opposing party; and the obligation to avoid abuse of process. The duty extends to not asserting a client's innocence in a way that puts the practitioner's own credibility behind a statement the practitioner knows to be untrue.
Traps
- The "zealous advocate" trap: questions invite you to prioritise the client's interest. The correct answer nearly always ranks the court duty first.
- The confidentiality clash: if a client confesses perjury to the solicitor, the solicitor cannot disclose the confidence but must decline to continue acting in a way that perpetuates the deception and must advise the client to correct it. If the client refuses, the solicitor must cease to act (and may need to disclose to the court only so much as necessary to prevent misleading it).
- The "technical truth" trap: a misleading half-truth is as serious as an outright lie.
Rule of thumb
Ask: "Will the court be left with a materially false impression if I stay silent?" If yes, act to correct it, even at cost to the client.