Legal Ethics

Lawyer Disciplined for Using Personal Laptop at Work to Earn Extra Bucks from JustAnswer.com

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A Kentucky lawyer has been reprimanded for using his personal laptop computer during downtime at work to earn extra income by answering legal questions on JustAnswer.com.

Matthew Scott Finley also got into hot water by occasionally using his state computer at his job in the public protection cabinet of Kentucky’s office of legal services to do legal research on the office Westlaw account and download documents for the purpose of his JustAnswer.com work, according to a Sept. 20 opinion (PDF) by the Kentucky Supreme Court.

A settlement agreement (PDF) that Finley signed last year concerning separate state executive branch ethics charges provides additional details. He agreed to pay a $2,000 fine as part of the settlement.

The documents don’t explain how the state found out about Finley’s work for the JustAnswer.com site.

Hat tip: Legal Profession Blog.

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