Could estate counsel give a creditor’s lawyer asset statements from an unresponsive personal representative’s file?

Plain-English summary

Estate counsel held copies of mutual-fund and annuity statements and could not reach the personal representative. A creditor's lawyer requested the statements.

The opinion treated the statements as confidential under Supreme Court Rule 4 and barred disclosure unless a court ordered it after the confidentiality issue was fully presented.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 2000, before Missouri’s 2007 revisions to the Rules of Professional Conduct. Later amendments or opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context and verify current rules before relying on it. The official Rule 4-1.9 and 4-1.10 reference notes identify July 1, 2007 amendments.

Common questions

Q: Could the creditor's lawyer receive the statements on request?

A: No. The opinion required a court order after full presentation of confidentiality.

Q: Did their inclusion in filed estate inventories change the answer?

A: The question said the assets were listed in filed inventories, but the answer still treated the statements as confidential.

Background and rules framework

The opinion applied client confidentiality under Supreme Court Rule 4 without naming a numbered subsection.

See also

• Missouri Informal Op. 20000101: Estate Documents

Source

• Landing page: https://mo-legal-ethics.org/informal-opinion/20000157/

• Rule revision reference: Missouri Informal Opinion 20030007

Original opinion text

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

QUESTION: Attorney represents a personal representative in two decedent’s estates. The client refuses to answer the telephone, respond to mail or answer the door when Attorney knocks. In the file, Attorney has photocopies of routine statements from mutual funds and an annuity company. These funds and the annuity are assets in the two estates and Attorney has listed the assets in the Inventory and Appraisements filed with the Probate Court. The Estates have a creditor, and counsel for that creditor would like to see the statements. Attorney is concerned that the statements may be covered by attorney/client privilege. Attorney will send a letter to Attorney’s client asking for authorization to show the statements to the creditor’s counsel, but Attorney may not get any response. Are such asset statements confidential to the client?

ANSWER: The statements are confidential under Supreme Court Rule 4. Attorney may not disclose the information unless Attorney is ordered to do so by the court, after the issue of confidentiality has been fully presented.