Especially in

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

' usage, an attorney of record is any

lawyer A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solic ...

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include taking cases in superior courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, researching law and ...

recognized by a

court A court is any person or institution, often as a government institution, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between parties and carry out the administration of justice in civil, criminal, and administrative matters in accordance ...

as representing (and therefore responsible to) a party to legal proceedings before it. Provided he or she is qualified to appear before the court in question, an attorney may become attorney of record for a party either by notifying the court of the attorney-client relationship, or by being so designated or appointed by the court. The attorney of record is the attorney who formally

appears "Appears" is a song recorded by Japanese recording artist Ayumi Hamasaki. It was released by Avex Trax on November 10, 1999 as the sixth single from her second studio album ''Loveppears'' (1999), which was released on the same day. Alongside thi ...

before the court, whether in person or by means of signed documents, on behalf of a party. However, the status is also an enforcement mechanism for a jurisdiction's applicable standards of

legal ethics Legal ethics are principles of conduct that members of the legal profession are expected to observe in their practice. They are an outgrowth of the development of the legal profession itself. In the United States In the U.S., each state or territ ...

and

professional responsibility Professional responsibility is a set of duties within the concept of professional ethics for those who exercise a unique set of knowledge and skill as professionals. Professional responsibility applies to those professionals making judgments, a ...

(for example, the

American Bar Association Model Rules of Professional Conduct The American Bar Association's Model Rules of Professional Conduct (MRPC) are a set of rules and commentaries on the ethical and professional responsibilities of members of the legal profession in the United States. Although the MRPC generally is ...

). Once an attorney is recognized as attorney of record, the attorney has a responsibility to continue representing the party in the proceedings until the case ends, or until granted leave by the court to withdraw. Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 5(b) states that, if a party is represented by an attorney, service of legal action in most cases must be made on the attorney, unless the court orders service on the party. The case of Guam Economic Development Authority v. Ulloa confirmed that service on an attorney of record is an "adequate" means of serving notice on the attorney's client.Guam Economic Development Authority v. Ulloa
Court of Appeal for the Ninth Circuit, published 14 March 1988, accessed 18 December 2020

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Attorney Of Record Legal procedure