Can a lawyer licensed in Illinois but living out of state open an Illinois office run by a paralegal?

Plain-English summary

A lawyer licensed in Illinois but maintaining an office in another state asked whether he could open an Illinois office and hire a paralegal to "run" it, with the lawyer present a certain number of days each week. The committee concluded the arrangement is not unethical per se.

The committee stressed strict adherence to the 1980 Code of Professional Responsibility. It pointed to Rule 3-101, which bars a lawyer from aiding a nonlawyer in the unauthorized practice of law but permits delegating work to a nonlawyer employee if the lawyer in fact supervises the nonlawyer and assumes complete responsibility for the work. It also reminded the inquiring lawyer of Rule 3-102, which bars sharing legal fees with a nonlawyer.

The committee found the new Canon 3 rules substantially the same as the prior rules and reaffirmed Opinion 505, which held that a lay administrative assistant may handle clerical matters delegated by an attorney, provided the attorney supervises the delegated work and assumes responsibility for it.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 1981, under the former Illinois Code of Professional Responsibility and before Illinois adopted the 2010 Rules of Professional Conduct. The ISBA Board of Governors affirmed the opinion in January 2010 as generally consistent with the 2010 Rules (Rules 5.3 and 5.5(a)), while cautioning that the specific standards referenced may differ from the 2010 Rules. Subsequent rule amendments or later opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current guidance. Verify against current rules before relying on any specific rule or requirement mentioned here.

Common questions

Q: Can an out-of-state but Illinois-licensed lawyer open an Illinois office run by a paralegal?

A: The opinion concluded the arrangement is not unethical per se, where the lawyer spends time in the office, supervises the paralegal's delegated work, and assumes complete responsibility for it.

Q: What are the limits on the paralegal's role?

A: Per the opinion, the lawyer may not aid the nonlawyer in the unauthorized practice of law (Rule 3-101) and may not share legal fees with the nonlawyer (Rule 3-102); the nonlawyer's work must be delegated, supervised, and the lawyer's responsibility.

Q: Does an earlier opinion still govern delegating work to a lay assistant?

A: Yes; the committee reaffirmed Opinion 505, that a lay administrative assistant may handle clerical matters delegated by an attorney who supervises the work and assumes responsibility for it.

Background and rules framework

The opinion applied Canon 3 of the Illinois Code of Professional Responsibility, Rule 3-101 (aiding the unauthorized practice of law; supervised delegation to nonlawyers) and Rule 3-102 (no sharing of fees with nonlawyers). The Board's 2010 affirmation maps the analysis to current Illinois Rules of Professional Conduct 5.3 (responsibilities regarding nonlawyer assistants) and 5.5(a) (unauthorized practice), corresponding to ABA Model Rules 5.3 and 5.5; the fee-sharing limit corresponds to Model Rule 5.4.

Citations and references

Rules of Professional Conduct:

• Illinois Code Canon 3; Rules 3-101, 3-102 (applied in the opinion)
• Illinois RPC 5.3, 5.5(a) (2010 equivalents per the Board's affirmation)
• MR 5.3 (nonlawyer assistants); MR 5.5 (unauthorized practice); MR 5.4 (no fee sharing with nonlawyers)

Other opinions cited:

• ISBA Opinion 505: a lay administrative assistant may handle delegated clerical work under attorney supervision and responsibility

See also

• ISBA Ethics Op. 13-08: Non-Illinois Lawyer Using a Nonlawyer Assistant
• ISBA Ethics Op. 22-03: Practicing Illinois Law From Outside Illinois
• ISBA Ethics Op. 25-01: Non-Illinois Lawyer Advising Illinois Businesses

Source

• Landing page: https://www.isba.org/ethics/opinions/744