May a lawyer share office space, a secretary, and possibly a telephone with a CPA in the same building?

Plain-English summary

A member planned to move into larger office space and wanted to share the cost of rent and other common office expenses with a close personal friend who is a CPA. The CPA would occupy his own private office and keep his files and clients entirely separate from the lawyer's; the only common ground would be sharing the space, the secretary, and possibly the telephone.

The committee pointed to its earlier Opinion 60-37, on an attorney sharing space in a suite maintained by an insurance and real estate broker, and to a statement in the Bar publication "Your Privileges and Responsibilities as a Lawyer in Florida" that it is not improper for a practicing attorney to share a reception room and receptionist with a real estate broker or insurance agent, provided the arrangement is not used for channeling legal work to, or feeding the law practice of, the attorney. It distinguished two withdrawn opinions: Opinion 59-6, which had held it improper for a lawyer who is also a CPA to practice both professions from the same office, and Opinion 59-16, which had held it improper to conduct a real estate business from the same office as a law business. On the facts presented, the committee did not believe there would be any impropriety in sharing offices with a CPA friend.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 1961, before The Florida Bar's adoption of the 2006 revisions to the Rules of Professional Conduct. The opinion applied former Canon 27 of the Canons of Professional Ethics; a lawyer's office-sharing arrangements with a nonlawyer are now addressed by Rules 4-5.4 and 4-5.7 of the Rules Regulating The Florida Bar (Model Rules 5.4 and 5.7), with confidentiality considerations under Rule 4-1.6. Treat this page as historical context, not current guidance. Verify against the current rules before relying on any specific requirement mentioned here.

Common questions

Q: Could the lawyer share a secretary and telephone with the CPA, not just the space?

A: Yes, on the facts presented. The committee found no impropriety in sharing the space, the secretary, and possibly the telephone, given that the CPA kept his own private office, files, and clients separate.

Q: What was the condition on the arrangement?

A: The arrangement could not be used to channel legal work to the attorney or to feed his law practice. The committee drew that condition from the Bar publication it cited and from its prior opinions.

Background and rules framework

The opinion applied former Canon 27 of the Canons of Professional Ethics. A lawyer's office-sharing arrangements with a nonlawyer are now addressed by Rules 4-5.4 and 4-5.7 of the Rules Regulating The Florida Bar (Model Rules 5.4 and 5.7), and the separation of files implicates the confidentiality rule, Rule 4-1.6. The committee's analysis turned on keeping the two practices separate and on the arrangement not being used to feed legal work to the lawyer.

Citations and references

Rules of Professional Conduct:

• Canon 27 [Canons of Professional Ethics; see current Rules 4-5.4, 4-5.7]

Other opinions cited:

• Florida Opinion 60-37: attorney sharing space in a broker's suite
• Florida Opinion 59-3
• Florida Opinion 59-6 [since withdrawn]: lawyer-CPA practicing both professions from one office
• Florida Opinion 59-16 [since withdrawn]: conducting a real estate business from a law office

Other authorities:

• The Florida Bar, Your Privileges and Responsibilities as a Lawyer in Florida, p. 28

See also

• FL Bar Ethics Op. 66-57: Nonlawyer Arbitrator Sharing Office and Door Listing
• FL Bar Ethics Op. 64-38: Office in a Corporate Client's Claims Department
• FL Bar Ethics Op. 63-12: Lawyer in an Independent Outside Business

Source

• Landing page: https://www.floridabar.org/etopinions/etopinion-61-9/
• Original PDF: https://www-media.floridabar.org/uploads/2017/04/FL-Bar-Ethics-Op-61-9-1.pdf

Original opinion text

Reproduced from the official source for research purposes. The linked source is authoritative.

FLORIDA BAR ETHICS OPINION
OPINION 61-9
July 18, 1961
Advisory ethics opinions are not binding.
It is not improper for a lawyer's office and a CPA's office to be located in the same building, and for them to share the services of a secretary, and possibly telephone, so long as the arrangement is not used to channel legal work to the attorney.
Canon: 27
Opinions: 59-3, 59-6, 59-16, 60-37
Chairman Holcomb stated the opinion of the committee:
A member of The Florida Bar submits a question as to whether it would be ethical for a Florida attorney to share space with a CPA. The member states that he contemplates moving into larger office space and has a close personal friend who is a CPA, and would like to share the cost of rent and other common office expenses, and that the CPA would occupy his own private office, keeping his files and clients entirely separate from the lawyer's, the only common ground being the use of the secretary and the sharing of space, and possibly telephone.
Our Committee rendered its Opinion 60-37 concerning the sharing of space in a suite of offices maintained by an insurance and real estate broker by an attorney. We also call attention to the statement contained in "Your Privileges and Responsibilities as a Lawyer in Florida" on page 28, wherein it is suggested that it is not improper for a practicing attorney to share a reception room and receptionist with a real estate broker or insurance agent, provided that the use thereof was not used for channeling legal work to, or feeding the law practice of the attorney. In Opinion 59-6 [since withdrawn], we held it was improper for a lawyer who is also a CPA to practice both professions from the same office in which he conducted his law business. In Opinion 59-16 [since withdrawn], we held that it would be improper for a lawyer to conduct a real estate business from the same office as his law business.
Under the circumstances presented we do not believe there would be any impropriety in sharing offices with a CPA friend.