What is legal ethics?

The term legal ethics is the embodiment of all principles of morality and refinement that should govern the conduct of every member of the bar. It has also been broadly defined as the “living spirit of the profession, which limits yet uplifts it as a livelihood.” Specifically, it refers to that branch of moral science which treats of the duties which an attorney owes to the court, to his client, to his colleagues in the profession and to the public. (Agpalo, Legal and Judicial Ethics, p. 2)