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NALSC Code of Ethics

Preamble

Anywhere this document specifies the term ‘member,’ ‘membership,’ or ‘search firm,’ it is referring to legal search members only.

The National Association of Legal Search Consultants (NALSC®) is committed to the provision of professional and ethical attorney placement services to the legal community. To that end, its members have established this Code of Ethics, subscribed to and endorsed by all as conditions of their continuing membership in accordance with Article III of the NALSC Bylaws.

Ethics Complaint Form
NALSC Chair of Ethics

Dan Binstock, Esq.
Garrison & Sisson
1627 I Street, NW, Suite 1230
Washington, DC 20006
202-429-5630

ARTICLE I

Relations With Employers
  1. Information provided to employers shall be the most accurate information known to the search firm.
  2. No search firm shall withhold candidate information which the employer would reasonably consider essential to its hiring decision.
  3. Candidates shall be submitted only (i) with prior authorization of the employer or (ii) where the search firm based on previous direct communication with the employer, reasonably believes the employer would accept the submission.
  4. Confidential information relating to the employer shall be treated accordingly.
  5. No search firm shall solicit any attorney from the office of an employer in which it has made a placement for a six-month period following that placement, unless otherwise agreed to by the search firm and the employer.
  6. No search firm shall solicit a candidate it has placed while that candidate remains with the employer that paid the recruiting fee.

ARTICLE II

Relations With Candidates
  1. Information provided to potential candidates during outreach or candidates during the recruiting process shall be the most accurate information known to the search firm.
  2. No search firm shall withhold employer information, which a candidate would reasonably consider essential to his or her hiring decision, subject to the search firm’s duties to the employer.
  3. Candidates shall be submitted to employers only with the candidates’ express prior consent.
  4. A search firm shall treat as confidential all information supplied to it in confidence by a candidate, subject to the search firm’s duties to the employer.
  5. Search firms shall make all submissions which have been authorized by the candidate and shall inform the candidate of the results of those submissions in a timely manner.
  6. No search firm shall attempt to exert undue influence on the candidate.

ARTICLE III

Relations Among Members
  1. Members of this Association shall relate to each other in a professional and ethical manner consistent with the goals of this Association.
  2. Except for fee-sharing agreements between search firms, no member shall make payments of any kind to gain business referrals or to induce others into a relationship as a client or candidate.
  3. Members are strongly encouraged to bring to the attention of the Association any violation of this Code.
  4. Members shall not commence lawsuits against other members, but shall arbitrate any Business Dispute or Business Disputes (as defined in the Bylaws of the Association) with other members arising out of their activities in the legal search profession in accordance with the Bylaws of the Association.

ARTICLE IV

General
  1. No member shall knowingly make any false or deceptive representations in any outreach or recruiting, or in any advertising, promotion or public relations materials.
  2. No member shall discriminate in the provision of its services on the basis of race, creed, color, national origin, religion, sex, marital status, handicap, age, sexual orientation, gender expression or any other legally proscribed criteria.
  3. Complaints under this Code shall be in writing, signed by the initiating party and filed with the President of the Association.
  4. Members shall cooperate with the Association’s investigation of alleged violations of this Code and shall abide by its decisions.
  5. Sanctions for violation of this Code, which include censure, suspension and expulsion from the Association, as well as procedures for hearings and appeals, are provided for in the Association’s Bylaws.
  6. No provisions in this code supersede or replace (1) agreements between search firms and employers, and/or (2) the requirements of local, state, and/or federal laws.
  7. Members shall comply with the NALSC Antitrust Legal Guidelines.

NALSC wishes to make clear that any published or unpublished statements or opinions of individual or groups of NALSC members or non-members regarding the applicability of the Code of Ethics are not binding on NALSC or its Members, in the absence of an express decision by the NALSC Board of Directors.

Usage of the NALSC Code of Ethics® certification trademark is strictly limited to current NALSC members. Please review this document for additional information.

The NALSC Mission

In addition to maintaining a strong Code of Ethics, NALSC is dedicated to:

  • Enhancing the image of the legal search profession through national public relations;
  • Providing education and information on trends and issues in the marketplace;
  • Monitoring and responding to legislative and regulatory activity that may impact the legal search profession.

Setting the Gold Standard in the Legal Search Industry