Could other lawyers in a city attorney's firm defend clients in that city's municipal court?

Plain-English summary

A firm member was the city attorney but not the city prosecutor. The question was whether other firm members could represent defendants in that municipality's court.

The opinion answered no. It treated the city as a client of a firm member and municipal defendants as directly adverse to the city's interests. It said that representation would violate Rule 4-1.7(a).

Currency note

This 1995 opinion predates Missouri's 2007 amendments to its Rules of Professional Conduct. An official reference note identifies July 1, 2007 amendments to Rules 4-1.9 and 4-1.10. Subsequent rule amendments or later opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context and verify current rules before relying on it.

Common questions

Q: Did it matter that the firm member was not the city prosecutor?

A: The opinion still barred other members from representing defendants in that city's municipal court because the city attorney's client was the city.

Q: What conflict did the opinion identify?

A: Direct adversity between the firm's proposed municipal defendants and its existing client, the city, under Rule 4-1.7(a).

Background and rules framework

The opinion applied Missouri Rule 4-1.7(a) to a firm's representation of municipal defendants where another firm member served as city attorney. Its answer rested on direct adversity to the city as a client.

Citations and references

Rules of Professional Conduct:

• Missouri Rule 4-1.7(a)

See also

• Missouri Informal Op. 970068: Judge's firm and city defense
• Missouri Informal Op. 950186: Judge's firm and zoning

Source

• Landing page: https://mo-legal-ethics.org/informal-opinion/950176/

Original opinion text

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

QUESTION: A member of the firm is the city attorney but not the city prosecutor. May other members of the firm represent defendants in municipal court? ANSWER: The members of the firm may not represent defendants in municipal court in the municipality in which a firm member is the city attorney. If a member of the firm is the city attorney, the city is a client of a member of the firm. By representing defendants in the city´s municipal court, members of the firm would be representing clients (municipal defendants) directly adverse to the interests of another client (the city) in violation of Rule 4–1.7(a).