1E9Ct5D

to successfully protect an investigation under the work-product doctrine down the road,the best practice is to inform employees in writing that they are being interviewed tohelp the company obtain legal advice.The purpose of the investigation must also beprominent; however, the investigation will be protected so long as the “primary purpose”of the communication is to obtain legal advice.VII.CompetencyIn-house counsel must be particularly sensitive to issues concerning his or hercompetence to represent corporate clients, particularly individuals within the corporationwhose conduct may be at issue in a civil matter or in dealing with government regulatorsor law enforcement. The ABA Model Rules provide guidance in this area, as well:ABA Rule 1.1 CompetenceA lawyer shall provide competent representation to a client. Competentrepresentation requires the legal knowledge, skill, thoroughness and preparationreasonably necessary for the representation.In-house counsel is responsible for a wide variety of legal issues that arise, therefore, itis imperative that they are aware of their ethical duty to provide competentrepresentation for a client. The comments state that an attorney may possess certainskills that apply to any legal problem, regardless of the attorney’s familiarity with theissue. These skills include the ability to analyze precedent, evaluating evidence, andlegal drafting. The comments also state that “[p]erhaps the most fundamental legal skillconsists of determining what kind of legal problems a situation may involve, a skill that14