State Bar of California Ethics Opinions
Free plain-English summaries of legal ethics opinions issued by the State Bar of California, with full citations and source links on every page.
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Can a lawyer act as an agent for a corporation soliciting personal management contracts with professional athletes?
The committee concluded that, on the stipulated conditions, the lawyer could act as the corporation's agent soliciting management contracts, because the collateral business met the ABA's criteria…
Can a lawyer teach a private course on legal fundamentals to lay persons without violating the advertising rules?
The committee concluded that, on the stipulated conditions (no use of the lawyer's name, firm, or office in advertising; only hypothetical questions; no acceptance or referral of attendees as…
Can a lawyer stay silent about an opposing party's insufficient redemption tender to let the redemption period expire?
The committee concluded that the plaintiff's attorney could not keep silent. There is ordinarily no affirmative duty to warn opposing counsel of a looming deadline, but where receiving a check…
Can a lawyer send clients pamphlets urging them to review their wills and recommend an in-office specialist?
The committee concluded that State Bar pamphlets could be placed in reception rooms and sent only to selected clients with circumspection, that a lawyer could tell an existing client another…
Can attorneys let their names and that they are lawyers appear in a paid political advertisement?
The committee concluded that paid advertisements on political or public-interest issues that list individual attorneys' names and identify them as lawyers did not violate former Rule 2 or former ABA…
Can a law firm list itself in the classified telephone directory of a community where it has no office?
The committee concluded that a proper, nondistinctive classified listing in an out-of-town directory was permissible where the lawyer or firm actually practiced in that community, a fact question,…
Can a lawyer record a telephone conversation with another lawyer or a layperson without a warning tone?
The committee concluded that, given the FCC order and telephone-company tariffs then in force, recording a telephone conversation without the required 'beep' warning tone violated the law and was…
Can a plaintiff's lawyer interview a manager of the defendant organization without the consent of the organization's counsel?
The committee concluded that, where the chamber of commerce was a represented adverse party and not a public body, plaintiff's counsel could not interview its manager about the case without opposing…
How does the State Bar of California committee process requests for legal ethics opinions?
Formal Opinion 1965-1 set out the committee's procedural ground rules: where to send requests, screening for any pending discipline, assignment and drafting, quorum and voting, the standard advisory…
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Legal ethics opinions from the State Bar of California interpret the rules of professional conduct for working lawyers, in response to inquiries from members and committees. They are advisory, 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.