Illinois State Bar Association Ethics Opinions
Free plain-English summaries of legal ethics opinions issued by the Illinois State Bar Association, with full citations and source links on every page.
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May a lawyer not admitted in Illinois run an Illinois immigration practice using a nonlawyer assistant?
Yes. Although Rule 5.5(b) bars an out-of-state lawyer from a systematic Illinois practice presence, the Rule 5.5(d)(2) federal-law exception lets an out-of-state lawyer practice immigration law (a fed…
Can a lawyer be both the prosecutor and an administrative hearing officer for the same Illinois municipality?
No. Serving as the municipality's prosecutor while also acting as its administrative hearing officer is a Rule 1.7(a)(2) conflict: the lawyer's duty of impartiality as a quasi-judicial hearing officer…
In an Illinois adoption case, must a lawyer serving as guardian ad litem get the petitioners' lawyer's consent before contacting the petitioners or the children?
Yes. A guardian ad litem in an adoption proceeding is treated as representing a client for purposes of Rule 4.2, so the GAL must obtain the petitioners' attorney's consent before interviewing the repr…
What must an Illinois lawyer do after learning a client submitted false material evidence in an administrative hearing?
The lawyer must try to get the client to correct or withdraw the false evidence, explaining that the lawyer may have to disclose it. If the client refuses, the lawyer should seek to withdraw, but with…
Can a lawyer who owns a stake in and chairs a bank serve as city attorney for a municipality that banks there?
No. The lawyer's ownership and board role trigger the Rule 1.8(a) business-transaction safeguards, and the representation is a Rule 1.7(a)(2) material-limitation conflict. The opinion concludes the co…
Is it the unauthorized practice of law in Illinois for a nonlawyer to represent a party in a FINRA arbitration, and what must a lawyer-arbitrator do about it?
Generally yes. A nonlawyer representing a party in a typical FINRA arbitration is engaged in the unauthorized practice of law in Illinois, because the work (pleadings, discovery, briefs, examining wit…
When a lawyer has represented a partnership and all its partners together and one partner sues another, may the lawyer take a side?
The lawyer has a conflict and ordinarily must withdraw from the failed common representation absent informed consent. Whether the lawyer may then represent the defending partner in the arbitration dep…
Can an Illinois lawyer for an estate's executor agree that the executor will personally pay fees a probate court disallowed as excessive?
No. Under Rule 1.5(a) a lawyer may not agree to or collect a fee a probate court found unreasonable. If the court disallows part of the estate-attorney's fee as excessive, that portion is unreasonable…
Can an Illinois lawyer charge a contingent fee to find and recover a client's unclaimed property?
It depends, and the fee must still be reasonable. There is no per se bar; whether a contingent fee is proper turns on what the lawyer knew at the outset about whether the property exists, its amount, …
When may an Illinois divorce lawyer use an advance payment retainer instead of a security retainer?
Only when a security retainer cannot accomplish the client's purpose. Rule 1.15 permits an advance payment retainer (which becomes the lawyer's property and goes in the general account) in any type of…
Can a lawyer licensed only in another state represent a party in an Illinois grievance arbitration, and how may that lawyer advertise in Illinois?
Yes, on a temporary basis. Rule 5.5(c)(3) lets an out-of-state lawyer who is not disbarred or suspended provide legal services for a grievance arbitration in Illinois if the services are temporary, re…
May a new Illinois lawyer discuss a client matter with a mentor from a formal mentoring program who is not in the same firm?
Yes, within limits. A new lawyer may discuss general or abstract questions with a mentor outside the firm as long as the client cannot be identified and no information relating to the representation i…
May an Illinois lawyer post a client's question on a bar association listserv or online discussion group to get advice from other lawyers?
Yes, with limits. A lawyer may consult other lawyers on a listserv if the inquiry is general or abstract and carries no real risk that the client can be identified or that information relating to the …
After an associate leaves an Illinois law firm, may the associate contact firm clients he worked with, tell them they can follow him, and when must the client be notified of the departure?
Yes. A departed associate may contact firm clients with whom he had an attorney-client relationship to report his departure and tell them they may stay with the firm or move the file to him, so long a…
Can an Illinois city attorney keep advising the plan commission and city council after a partner in the same firm appears before those bodies to oppose a zoning change?
Not without informed consent. The partner's appearance against the city creates a Rule 1.7 conflict imputed firm-wide under Rule 1.10, and the city attorney's recusal from the partner's matter does no…
Can an Illinois lawyer keep representing a school district when a partner in the same firm has brought a proceeding against the district?
Only with informed consent. The partner's proceeding is directly adverse to a current firm client, creating a Rule 1.7 conflict imputed to the whole firm under Rule 1.10; recusing from the matter does…
Can a discharged Illinois lawyer enforce a fee-division agreement with the client's new lawyer without the client's written consent?
No. Rule 1.5(e) requires the client's written agreement to any fee division between lawyers not in the same firm, so a discharged-lawyer/successor split without it is unenforceable. The discharged law…
Can an Illinois lawyer withdraw from a divorce when an irrational client refuses to sign a favorable settlement, and can the lawyer ask the court to consider a guardian?
Yes on both. Rule 1.16(b) permits withdrawal where the client makes the representation unreasonably difficult or insists on action the lawyer fundamentally disagrees with. Under Rule 1.14(b)-(c), a la…
Can a lawyer licensed only in another state primarily practice in Illinois if an Illinois-licensed partner supervises the Illinois matters?
No. Rule 5.5(b) bars a lawyer not admitted in Illinois from establishing a systematic and continuous presence in Illinois for the practice of law, even with an Illinois-licensed partner supervising an…
Must an Illinois lawyer reveal a client's confidential information to prevent a threatened child sexual abuse by a third party?
Yes, where the Rule 1.6(c) test is met. Child sex abuse is 'substantial bodily harm,' so an Illinois lawyer must reveal information relating to the representation to the extent reasonably believed nec…
Does an Illinois lawyer have to tell the court that an unrepresented opponent has a defense the lawyer believes is unenforceable?
No. Rule 3.3's candor duty requires disclosing controlling adverse legal authority, not adverse facts. The lawyer need not alert the court to an agreement that could give the unrepresented opponent a …
How long must an Illinois lawyer keep client files, trust-account records, and conflict records, and when can routine case files be destroyed?
Client-identity records under Supreme Court Rule 769(1) must be kept indefinitely; trust-account records (Rule 1.15) and financial records (SCR 769(2)) for at least seven years. Routine case-file mate…
Can an Illinois lawyer who consulted with one spouse about a divorce later represent the other spouse in the same divorce?
Generally no. Under Rule 1.18, the first spouse is a prospective client; if the lawyer received information that could be significantly harmful in the same matter, the lawyer (and the firm) is conflic…
Can an Illinois lawyer label a soliciting mailing 'promotional materials' instead of 'Advertising Material' to satisfy Rule 7.3(c)?
No. Rule 7.3(c) requires the specific words 'Advertising Material'; labeling a solicitation 'promotional materials' does not comply. The labeling requirement applies only to direct solicitations of pr…
Can an Illinois lawyer join a business networking group that trades client referrals between members, including nonlawyer professionals?
Yes, with conditions: the reciprocal referrals must be non-exclusive, the client must consent before the lawyer shares the client's name and be told the referral arrangement exists, and the arrangemen…
Can an Illinois estate planning lawyer charge a fee based solely on a percentage of the value of the client's estate?
No. The opinion concludes that charging a fee calculated solely as a percentage of the estate's value, without regard to time expended and the other Rule 1.5(a) factors, is unreasonable and improper.
Can an Illinois lawyer collecting on a bounced check refer it to the state's attorney for criminal prosecution to pressure the debtor in the civil suit?
No. The lawyer may return the check and tell the client the client may pursue criminal charges on the client's own, but the lawyer may not present or participate in presenting criminal charges to gain…
A trustee's lawyer will likely be called as a witness; how far can the lawyer keep representing the trustee?
The lawyer may handle all pre-trial work up to the commencement of trial but may not act as trial counsel at any point during the trial, even before being called. The lawyer may also continue represen…
Can a lawyer who is likely to be a necessary trial witness keep representing the client before trial, and can the lawyer represent two clients in the same matter?
Yes to both, with conditions. Rule 3.7 only bars a likely necessary witness from acting as an advocate at trial, so the lawyer may handle pre-trial work and must inform the client of the limit under R…
Can a criminal defense lawyer represent a defendant when the lawyer's spouse is a police-officer witness for the prosecution?
No. The lawyer has a non-waivable personal-interest conflict under Rule 1.7(a)(2) and cannot reasonably provide competent, diligent representation, so the conflict cannot be cured by consent. The disq…
Can a lawyer sign a confidentiality agreement promising never to use a consultant's legal ideas for other clients?
No, where the ideas are legal interpretations the lawyer would use for other clients. Signing such an agreement creates a concurrent conflict under Rule 1.7 with the lawyer's other and future clients,…
Must a lawyer serving as a mediator report another lawyer's dishonesty learned during the mediation, despite mediation confidentiality statutes?
Yes. A lawyer who serves as a mediator and comes to know that a party's lawyer violated Rule 8.4(c) must report it under Rule 8.3(a), and the confidentiality provisions of the Uniform Mediation Act an…
Can a lawyer agree to use a referral source's affiliated title insurer in exchange for continued client referrals?
No. An exclusive, mandatory referral arrangement that requires the lawyer to steer clients to the referral source's affiliated title company violates the lawyer's duty of independent judgment (Rules 2…
Can a law firm let an outside IT vendor access its network and client files without breaking confidentiality rules?
Yes, on or off site, if the firm makes reasonable efforts to protect client information under Rules 1.6 and 5.3, such as a written confidentiality agreement with the vendor. Whether access is remote o…
Can a lawyer defend a physician when his firm already represents the co-defendant hospital in other cases, and he represents another physician who will testify against this one?
No. Where the physician's position is directly adverse to the firm's hospital client and to another physician-client who will testify against him, the opinion finds non-consentable conflicts under Rul…
When an organization is represented by counsel, which of its current and former employees may opposing counsel contact without permission?
Opposing counsel may contact a current constituent unless that person directs the matter, can bind the organization, or whose conduct may be imputed to it; former constituents may be contacted freely,…
Can a lawyer sell his law practice to an associate and then keep practicing as 'of counsel' to the buyer's new firm in the same area?
No. Rule 1.17 lets a lawyer sell a practice only if he stops practicing on a fee basis in that geographic area; selling just the tangible assets and staying on as of counsel is allowed, with notice to…
Can a lawyer who sues some state agencies also represent a different state agency, or is the whole state government one client for conflict purposes?
The state government is not a single client made up of every agency under the Governor; a lawyer may represent one state agency while representing a private party adverse to a different state agency, …
Can a law firm hire a marketing company to distribute ads, screen responses, and be paid a percentage of fees from clients it brings in?
The firm may have a marketing company distribute mailed, posted, and door-to-door ads, but the company may not make personal contact, may not screen responses for merit, and may not be paid a share of…
Can a plaintiff's lawyer personally guarantee to the defendant that medical liens and subrogation claims will be paid out of a client's settlement?
No. A plaintiff's lawyer who guarantees and indemnifies the defendant that liens and subrogation claims will be paid from settlement proceeds is providing prohibited financial assistance to the client…
Can a lawyer represent a client against a witness who is the lawyer's former client from an unrelated matter, and cross-examine that former client?
Yes to the representation, with limits on cross-examination. The opinion concludes the lawyer may represent the new client in an unrelated matter, but may cross-examine the former client only without …
Can a lawyer who mediated a divorce draft the dissolution documents for both unrepresented spouses to file pro se?
No. The opinion concludes a lawyer-mediator who drafts the judgment of dissolution and related agreements for two unrepresented spouses ends up representing both adverse parties in violation of Rule 1…
Can one firm represent a creditor pursuing a debtor's property and also a buyer trying to purchase that same property?
No. The opinion concludes a firm cannot represent both a judgment-creditor client trying to reach a debtor's property and a buyer trying to acquire that property; their interests are directly antagoni…
Is a lawyer responsible for a sign-language interpreter's conduct, and do client communications stay confidential when an interpreter is present?
Yes to both. The opinion concludes a lawyer's Rule 5.3 duties over nonlawyer assistants extend to interpreters retained to communicate with a hearing-impaired client, and that communications made in t…
Can a firm pay a former partner who became a prosecutor a share of a contingent fee earned after he left the firm?
Yes. The opinion concludes a firm may pay a former partner who became a State's Attorney a share of a contingent fee earned after he withdrew, if paid under a separation agreement governed by Rule 1.5…
Can a lawyer list a non-legal professional certification, like a Certified Trust Financial Advisor designation, on a business card?
Yes. The opinion concludes a lawyer may list a non-legal accreditation such as CTFA on a business card, because it is not a subspecialty of law within Rule 7.4 and, given the credential's bona fide re…
Must a lawyer file suit for a missing, unreachable client to beat the statute of limitations before closing the file?
Generally no. The opinion concludes a firm has no duty to file suit for a missing client it cannot reach, unless the client gave specific authorization to file before disappearing and the firm has eno…
Can an Illinois lawyer list a Supreme Court Capital Litigation Trial Bar certification on letterhead without the no-specialty disclaimer?
Yes. The opinion concludes that Supreme Court Rule 714, which has the Court itself certify Capital Litigation Trial Bar members, is the more recent and controlling rule, so a lawyer may list that cert…
Can a law firm keep a departed, retired, or of-counsel lawyer's name in the firm name, or name non-shareholders in a PC?
A firm name may not imply a partnership or shareholder status that does not exist, and a partner who leaves to join another firm must be dropped; a retired or of-counsel lawyer's name may stay if the …
Can an Illinois lawyer negotiate a client's out-of-state injury claim from his home office without associating local counsel?
Yes, on these facts. The opinion concludes an Illinois lawyer who negotiates a client's medical claim in another state from his own office, where no suit is filed, does not commit the unauthorized pra…
Can a lawyer take a contingent fee to pursue a divorced client's marital property claim after the other spouse has died?
Yes. The opinion concludes that a contingent fee is permissible in post-judgment proceedings to determine marital property rights where one former spouse has died, because reconciliation is irreversib…
Can a firm pay its unpaid fees out of trust funds left by a corporate client that has since been dissolved?
Only with consent or a court order. The opinion concludes the firm may transfer the trust funds to satisfy its fee claim if it obtains written consent from the dissolved client through a former office…
Can a lawyer sit on a reinsurer's board while representing the primary insurers whose policies it reinsures?
Only with consent. The opinion concludes that serving on the reinsurer's board while representing a primary insurer on a reinsured claim creates a Rule 1.7(b) conflict, usually waivable by the client'…
Can two lawyers in the same firm separately represent a city and a park district located within it?
Yes, on these facts. The opinion concludes the two units are separate clients with no current direct adversity, so there is no Rule 1.7 conflict, though the lawyers may have to disclose the limits tha…
Can a collection lawyer overstate a judgment amount and pressure third parties to advance the client's interests?
No. The opinion concludes that serving citations stating a judgment amount the lawyer knew was wrong, and refusing to correct it, violated Rules 4.1(a), 3.3(a), and 8.4(a)(4), and that threats and sta…
Can a lawyer-only mediation firm pay a nonlawyer accounting firm a referral fee for sending it mediation clients?
No. The opinion concludes that a mediation firm made up entirely of lawyers may not pay a nonlawyer a referral fee for mediation clients; the arrangement violates Illinois Rules 5.4(a) and 7.2(b) and …
Must a lawyer report another lawyer for failing to segregate disputed funds a third party claims under a lien?
No. The opinion concludes there is no duty to report a lawyer who fails to segregate a referral fee subject to a good-faith lien challenge, even after a court rules the funds belong to the claimant, u…
Can a lawyer withdraw when a client stops paying and then discard the client's files if the client does not pick them up?
Withdrawal yes, discarding no. The opinion concluded the lawyer may terminate for a client's nonpayment or failure to communicate, but must take reasonable steps to avoid foreseeable prejudice, and di…
Must a law firm download a former client's electronic file from its computer system when the client asks for it?
Yes. The opinion concluded that when a client is entitled to file materials, the firm may not refuse to download them to disk if that can be done easily and without disclosing other clients' confidenc…
Can a lawyer draft a client's trust that directs the trustee to retain that same lawyer as counsel for the trust?
Yes, with disclosure. The opinion concluded the lawyer may include such a provision at the client's request only if the lawyer reasonably believes the representation will not be adversely affected and…
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Legal ethics opinions from the Illinois State Bar Association 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.