Alabama State Bar Ethics Opinions
Free plain-English summaries of legal ethics opinions issued by the Alabama State Bar, with full citations and source links on every page.
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What are an Alabama lawyer's ethical duties when using AI tools like ChatGPT in legal practice?
AI creates no new ethical duties but recontextualizes existing ones. An Alabama lawyer must independently verify AI output, safeguard client data, supervise AI as a nonlawyer assistant, bill only for …
Can an Alabama lawyer collect both a court-awarded fee and a contingency fee, and share court-awarded fees with a referring lawyer?
Yes to both, with limits. The lawyer may take a contingency fee and petition for a statutory fee award if the combined amount is not clearly excessive, and may share court-awarded fees with a referrin…
Can an Alabama lawyer charge a separate contingency fee for negotiating reductions of medical or subrogation liens on top of a gross-recovery contingency fee?
No, absent extraordinary circumstances. Charging a second contingency fee for lien-reduction work that is incident to a personal injury settlement is a clearly excessive fee, sometimes called double-d…
Can a non-lawyer represent a party in a court-ordered arbitration in Alabama, and what must a lawyer do if one tries?
No. Absent a statute allowing it, a non-lawyer representing a party in a court-ordered arbitration in Alabama commits the unauthorized practice of law, and a lawyer involved must bring the issue to th…
Can an Alabama lawyer share legal fees with an accountant or other non-lawyer for referring or working on a BP oil-spill claim?
No. Prosecuting a BP claim is the practice of law, so sharing the fee with a non-lawyer, or paying a non-lawyer for the referral, violates Rules 5.4(a), 5.5, and 7.2(c).
Can an Alabama lawyer sell discounted legal services through Groupon or other daily-deal websites?
No. The opinion concludes that the website's percentage cut is impermissible fee sharing with a non-lawyer under Rule 5.4, and the model also implicates the trust-account, refund, conflict-check, comp…
Can a criminal defense lawyer advise a client to waive ineffective-assistance-of-counsel claims in a plea deal, and can a prosecutor demand that waiver?
No to both. Advising a client to waive IAC claims against that same lawyer violates Rules 1.7(b) and 1.8(h), and a prosecutor who requires the waiver violates Rule 8.4(a).
Can a plaintiff's lawyer agree to personally indemnify the defendant for the client's unpaid liens as a condition of settlement?
Generally no. A lawyer may not personally indemnify the opposing side for unpaid liens unless the liens are known and certain in amount at settlement; a defense lawyer may not demand such open-ended i…
When an Alabama lawyer is hired to help administer or probate an estate, who is the lawyer's client, the personal representative or the estate's beneficiaries?
Ordinarily the personal representative is the lawyer's sole client, not the beneficiaries. The lawyer must clarify under Rule 4.3 that he does not represent the beneficiaries, and if the personal repr…
How long must an Alabama lawyer keep a client's file, who owns it, and can the lawyer store client files in the cloud?
The file belongs to the client and must be kept at least six years after the matter ends (longer or indefinitely for wills, estate, tax, criminal, and business files). The lawyer must return the entir…
Can an Alabama lawyer offer limited-scope (unbundled) services and ghostwrite pleadings for a pro se litigant without disclosing the help to the court?
Yes. Rule 1.2 permits unbundled legal services, and a lawyer ordinarily need not disclose ghostwriting a pro se litigant's pleading if a valid limited-scope agreement exists, the involvement is not ma…
What must an Alabama lawyer do when a client intends to commit perjury, or when the lawyer learns the client has already lied under oath?
The lawyer must first try to dissuade the client; if the client insists on testifying falsely, the lawyer must refuse to offer it and move to withdraw. If the lawyer learns of past perjury and the cli…
In Alabama, can a lawyer treat a flat fee as earned on receipt, or must the unearned flat fee go into the IOLTA trust account?
A flat fee received before the work is done is unearned and must be held in the lawyer's IOLTA account until earned, because all fees paid in advance are refundable to the extent unearned. The only ex…
In Alabama, can a lawyer represent criminal clients when a partner serves as a part-time municipal court judge or part-time assistant district attorney?
A partner or associate of a regularly serving part-time municipal court judge may not represent clients in that court, because the conflict is imputed under Rule 1.10. A partner of a part-time assista…
Can an Alabama lawyer advertise the ability to communicate in a foreign language when a nonlawyer employee, not the lawyer, will actually do the communicating?
Yes, but the advertisement must make clear that the employee, not the lawyer, will communicate in the foreign language. Any Rule 7.2(e) disclaimer must appear in the advertised language (and in Englis…
In Alabama, may a lawyer use private investigators who pose as ordinary customers to investigate suspected intellectual-property infringers before suit is filed?
Yes. Before litigation, a lawyer may use investigators posing as ordinary customers to investigate suspected infringers on the same basis as any member of the public, and limited misrepresentations of…
Can a lawyer who represents a closely held corporation at the board's direction also represent individual directors in their unrelated private matters?
Yes. Corporate counsel may represent the corporation at the direction of a majority of the board and also represent individual directors in separate, unrelated private matters, so long as the matters …
In Alabama, can a law firm hire a temporary or contract lawyer through a staffing agency, and what conflict, confidentiality, consent, and fee rules apply?
Yes. A firm may use a temporary lawyer placed by a staffing agency if it runs conflict checks (the temp is treated as a firm member for Rule 1.10), safeguards confidentiality, informs the client and o…
In Alabama, must a lawyer scrub metadata before sending an electronic document, and is it ethical to mine metadata from a document received from another party?
A lawyer must use reasonable care under Rule 1.6 to prevent disclosure of confidential metadata when sending electronic documents, and, absent a court's authorization, may not mine metadata from a doc…
Can a liability insurer's salaried staff lawyer represent the insurer's insureds in Alabama, and what must the lawyer disclose?
Yes. A full-time staff lawyer for a liability insurer may defend the insurer's insureds where the insured's and insurer's interests are fully aligned and the insurer has a direct financial interest, b…
Whom may an Alabama lawyer directly solicit in person or by telephone for legal business without violating the anti-solicitation rule?
Rule 7.3(a) lets a lawyer directly solicit, in person or by phone, family members (by blood or marriage) and current or former clients. Strangers known to need legal services remain off-limits when a …
How may an Alabama lawyer bill a client for costs and expenses, and what billing practices for fees and expenses are improper?
A lawyer may pass through actual costs but not general overhead, and may not surcharge disbursements, bill more than one client for the same hours, or recycle prior research as new billable time. The …
Can a lawyer whose firm represents a city in civil matters also defend criminal clients in that city's municipal court, and can the resulting conflict be waived?
The conflict between representing the city and defending criminal clients prosecuted by the city is a direct, materially limiting conflict, and the opinion calls waiver highly questionable, but it dec…
Can a lawyer suing a government agency contact the agency's officials directly about the case without the agency lawyer's consent?
Yes. The opinion concludes a lawyer for a party in a controversy with a government agency may communicate directly with the agency's officials about the matter, including settlement, under the 'author…
If a lawyer sends a creditor a protection letter promising payment from a settlement, must the lawyer pay the creditor even after the client says not to?
Yes. The opinion concludes a lawyer who has sent a protection letter and holds settlement funds in trust is ethically obligated to pay the creditor the reasonable, undisputed amount despite the client…
What attorney advertising and solicitation practices does Alabama allow, including business cards, prescription-bag ads, comparative claims, and testimonials?
The opinion answers ten advertising questions: business cards left for third parties to distribute and prescription-bag ads are improper agent solicitation; pro bono offers and communications to forme…
Can a lawyer put a binding arbitration clause in the attorney-client fee contract, and under what condition?
Only if the client is independently represented. The opinion concludes a binding arbitration provision prospectively limits the lawyer's malpractice liability under Rule 1.8(h), so it is ethical only …
Can a lawyer interview a low-level employee (such as a store cashier) of an opposing organization without opposing counsel's consent?
Yes, when the employee is non-managerial, did not engage in the conduct at issue, and lacks authority to make decisions about the litigation. The opinion limits Rule 4.2's 'admission' category to empl…
Can an Alabama law firm form a partnership or affiliation with foreign (non-U.S.) lawyers?
Yes. A foreign lawyer who is a member of a recognized legal profession in the foreign jurisdiction is not a 'nonlawyer' under Rule 5.4, so an Alabama firm may affiliate, form a partnership, or practic…
If a paralegal or other nonlawyer employee moves from one firm to an opposing firm during pending litigation, can a screen ('Chinese wall') keep the new firm from being disqualified?
No, not on the firm's own say-so. The opinion overrules its earlier screening opinions and holds a nonlawyer is judged by the same standard as a lawyer: a firm that hires a nonlawyer who acquired conf…
Can a lawyer join a barter and referral club where members trade services and refer clients to each other?
Yes, with a condition. The opinion concluded a lawyer may join a barter club like BNI or TBI without violating Rules 7.2(c) or 7.3, but the lawyer must make a good faith determination, for each client…
If a lawyer once served as city attorney and now defends city officials in suits the city or its insurer may have to pay, can the lawyer take a new client against the city in an unrelated matter?
It depends on capacity and who pays. The opinion concluded that if the officials are sued in their official capacity, or in their individual capacity but the city or its insurer would pay any judgment…
Can an attorney serving as a guardian ad litem communicate ex parte with the judge about the case?
No. The opinion concluded that a guardian ad litem is an advocate for the ward, not an adviser to the court, so the same Rule 3.5 ban on ex parte communication that applies to any lawyer applies to a …
If a lawyer occasionally serves as a substitute municipal judge, are the lawyer's partners disqualified from representing clients in that same municipal court?
No. The opinion concluded the conflict is personal to the lawyer who sits as substitute judge and is not imputed to the firm under Rule 1.10, so the lawyer's partners may represent municipal-court cli…
Can one lawyer pay another lawyer's advertising costs in exchange for the advertised lawyer referring clients?
No. The opinion concluded the arrangement violates Rule 7.1 because it misleads the public about which lawyer will actually represent them, and violates Rule 7.2(c) because paying a lawyer's advertisi…
Can a law firm sell its own pre-paid legal services plans and then provide the legal services those plans cover?
No. The opinion concluded a firm that acts as its own insurer for pre-paid legal services has an inherent conflict of interest with the client, because a single set fee for unlimited services gives th…
Can a lawyer paid by an insurer to defend an insured follow the insurer's litigation-management guidelines and send bills to a third-party auditor?
Not where they cross the line. The opinion concluded a lawyer must not let an insurer's litigation-management guidelines interfere with the lawyer's independent professional judgment, and must not dis…
Can a lawyer take a child-support-arrearage collection case on a contingency fee?
Rarely. Because the state now collects back child support for free, the opinion concluded a contingent fee is almost never in the child's best interest; it is permitted only on a good-faith best-inter…
Can a lawyer pay a witness, and can an expert witness's fee be contingent on the outcome?
A lawyer may pay an expert witness a reasonable and customary fee for preparing and giving expert testimony, but the fee may not be contingent on the outcome. A lawyer may not pay a fact witness for t…
Can a collections lawyer pay a percentage of recoveries to a third-party software/electronic-network company that connects the firm with creditor clients?
Yes. The opinion concluded that paying a national attorney network a 3% fee for software licensing and electronic data transfer is not fee-splitting with a non-lawyer and is not a prohibited for-profi…
May Alabama lawyers practice law through a registered limited liability partnership, either as members or as employees?
Yes. The opinion concluded Alabama lawyers may form a limited liability partnership with other lawyers or professional corporations to practice law, as long as each lawyer remains ethically responsibl…
Do a state's lawyer-advertising and solicitation rules apply to a lawyer's web page, online postings, and email?
Yes. The opinion concluded that the advertising and solicitation rules focus on the content of advertising, not the means, so any information a lawyer makes available about the lawyer or the lawyer's …
Can a lawyer add extra wording to a direct-mail envelope beyond the required 'Advertisement' label, and can the required mailing list be filed on a computer disk?
No on both points. The opinion concluded that adding extraneous words to a direct-mail solicitation envelope violates the rule because it subverts the recipient's option to disregard a legal advertise…
When a government child-support attorney represents the agency, can the same attorney handle a later case adverse to a parent the agency once helped, and what must the attorney disclose to service recipients?
The opinion concluded that, because a state statute makes the agency the IV-D attorney's exclusive client with no attorney-client relationship to any service recipient, the attorney may handle later a…
Can the same lawyers represent two separate plaintiff classes in different suits against the same defendants without a conflict of interest?
Yes, on the facts presented. The opinion concluded there was no present conflict where two plaintiff classes were not competing for a limited pool of recovery and their interests were not adverse, tho…
Can a lawyer charge a contingent fee in a divorce case, including a fee tied to setting aside an antenuptial agreement that is bound up with the divorce?
No. The opinion concluded a lawyer may not charge a fee in a domestic relations matter that is contingent on securing a divorce or on the amount of alimony, support, or property settlement, and that p…
If one law firm hires a second firm that is its frequent courtroom adversary, must both firms tell their existing clients and get consent?
Not necessarily. The opinion concluded the two firms need not notify their clients or obtain consent if, but only if, the lawyers involved make a good-faith determination that the firms' attorney-clie…
Can a prosecutor try cases against criminal defendants who are represented by the prosecutor's sibling?
Only with consent. The opinion concluded a prosecutor may try cases defended by the prosecutor's brother only if both the district attorney's office and the brother's clients give informed consent aft…
When a public-body client is subject to an open-meetings law, can the lawyer keep attorney-client discussions confidential, or must legal advice and strategy be aired in a public meeting?
The opinion concluded that, for purposes of the Rules of Professional Conduct, the lawyer's confidentiality duty under Rule 1.6 outweighs the open-meetings statute, and the protection covers attorney-…
Can a bar-association lawyer referral service charge participating attorneys a percentage of the fees they earn on referred cases?
Yes. The opinion concluded a percentage-fee program is an ethically permissible way to fund a lawyer referral service as long as the income is used to defray the cost of operating the service or to su…
Can a criminal defense lawyer represent a defendant when the key eyewitness is a former client whose confidential information could be used to impeach him?
No. The opinion concluded the defense lawyer is disqualified because a presumption exists that the lawyer gained confidential information during the prior representation, and the real risk that it cou…
When a client is too emotionally unstable to assist in the case or make decisions, can the lawyer seek a guardian and disclose the client's condition to the court?
The opinion concluded that, under Rule 1.14, a lawyer may seek appointment of a guardian or take other protective action when the lawyer reasonably believes the client cannot adequately act in the cli…
When a lawyer learns a client or prospective client has a serious mental disorder, can the lawyer prepare documents or file suit for them, and when may the lawyer seek a guardian?
The opinion concluded a lawyer may seek appointment of a guardian or take other protective action only when the lawyer reasonably believes the client cannot adequately act in the client's own interest…
Can a title or finance company collect 'settlement fees' for legal work its in-house counsel performs at real estate closings, instead of attorney's fees?
No. The opinion concluded that a company collecting fees for legal work performed by its in-house counsel is splitting legal fees with a nonlawyer entity in violation of Rule 5.4(a), and renaming the …
Is a former government official barred from representing private plaintiffs against the agency in a later case that shares only some legal issues with a matter the official handled in office?
No. The opinion concluded that under Rule 1.11(a), a former public officer is disqualified only from the same 'matter' he participated in personally and substantially, and a later case with different …
Is a firm disqualified from suing a person one of its lawyers briefly advised earlier, and how is 'substantially related' determined?
It depends on the trial court's findings. The opinion concluded that under Rule 1.9, the firm is disqualified if the present suit is substantially related to the prior representation or if the lawyer …
Can a lawyer state on letterhead, business cards, or advertising that the lawyer is certified as an arbitrator by the American Arbitration Association?
Yes. The opinion concluded that stating a lawyer is certified as an arbitrator by the American Arbitration Association is not false or misleading and does not violate Rules 7.1 and 7.7, because arbitr…
Can a lawyer who also represents some of the opposing company's managerial employees in unrelated cases talk to them ex parte about the main lawsuit?
The opinion concluded the lawyer may speak with his managerial/supervisory clients about their own matters, but whether he may discuss the opposing party's case turns on whether those employees are in…
When a former defense lawyer joins a district attorney's office, must the whole DA's office be disqualified from cases the new hire defended?
The opinion concluded that a district attorney and the other assistants are not vicariously disqualified under Rule 1.11 when a newly hired assistant previously appeared as defense counsel, so long as…
If a client gave a false answer on a bonding application and won't fix it, can the lawyer tell the bonding company or the court, or must the lawyer withdraw?
The opinion concluded the lawyer cannot disclose the client's past fraud under Rule 1.6 because neither of Rule 1.6(b)'s narrow exceptions applies, but if the lawyer's services are being used to furth…
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Legal ethics opinions from the Alabama State Bar interpret the rules of professional conduct for working lawyers, in response to inquiries from members and committees. They are not binding like court discipline decisions, but courts and discipline boards treat formal opinions as substantial guidance on how the rules apply. Every opinion above has a plain-English question and short answer, plus a link to the original source on the bar's site.