Gawthrop Presents: Stacey L. Fuller on Attorney Ethics in a Time of Crisis

Every profession is facing uncharted territory during the COVID-19 pandemic, but the ethics of your attorney should be something you can depend on.

Recently Gawthrop Greenwood attorney and partner Stacey L. Fuller spoke at the Pennsylvania Bar Institute’s annual Municipal Law Update on ethics standards that municipalities should expect from their solicitors during times of crisis. Topics included:

• Operating at full capacity (and virtually) for local governments whose services were essential during Pennsylvania’s statewide stay-at-home order that began March 19, 2020
• Transitioning to the yellow phase of reopening legal services, as well as when Pennsylvania’s statewide judicial emergency was lifted on June 1, 2020
• Upholding ethical duties to pursue a matter on behalf of a client despite opposition and obstruction created by pandemic delays
• Staying abreast of continual changes in the law affecting local government during the pandemic including, Executive Orders, Act 15 of 2020, CDC Guidance, Act 17 of 2020, FFCRA and CARES Act
• Balancing former rules and systems with the new realities of stay-at-home, closures and social distancing, including for:
  • Public meetings
  • Local agency hearings
  • Labor and employment issues
  • Right to Know law
  • Permitting processes
• Ensuring procedural due process requirements of ordinances, Pennsylvania law and/or the Constitution are met for items including land use, zoning, civil service, labor/employment, code enforcement
• Ensuring relevant municipal code, Act 15 and Sunshine Law requirements and local policies are integrated to meet municipal and public needs fairly and efficiently

A leader of Gawthrop Greenwood’s Government & Education Law department and frequent presenter at PBI’s Municipal Law Colloquium, Stacey Fuller represents municipalities, townships, boroughs, planning commissions, zoning hearing boards and other governmental entities, as well as individual developers and residents on issues such as zoning and other land development matters. Fuller is a past Chair of the Pennsylvania Bar Association’s Municipal Law Section and has been elected to the House of Delegates for the Pennsylvania Bar Association. She is also a member of the Pennsylvania State Association of Township Solicitors and the Pennsylvania State Association of Boroughs.

To contact Stacey, email sfuller@gawthrop.com or call 610-696-8225.