New Jersey Supreme Court Advisory Committee on Professional Ethics Ethics Opinions
Free plain-English summaries of legal ethics opinions issued by the New Jersey Supreme Court Advisory Committee on Professional Ethics, with full citations and source links on every page.
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Can a lawyer who is also a shareholder or house counsel of a company collect a real estate broker's commission on the sale of the company's property?
Sometimes. An attorney-shareholder may act as attorney and broker on the corporation's sale only after full disclosure and the informed consent of the corporation and all stockholders. But where…
Must a lawyer who learns from a new client of a husband's concealed mortgage disclose the fraud to the former client, the wife, and the court?
Yes. The Committee held that the crime-or-fraud exception to the privilege (Evidence Rule 26(2)(a)) and RPC 1.6(b) required the lawyer to notify the court and the former wife of a secret mortgage…
May a lawyer disclose that a purported accident passenger he also represented submitted a fraudulent insurance claim?
Yes. The Committee held that the facts fall within the RPC 1.6(c) exception authorizing the lawyer to disclose, where he had represented both a driver and a purported passenger and the driver's PIP…
Can a municipal court judge co-own an office building with the municipal prosecutor and municipal attorney of the same town, if they keep separate offices?
No. The Committee concluded the co-ownership would be the equivalent of sharing office space and present an absolute appearance of impropriety, given that a municipal judge would be a business…
Can a Deputy Attorney General prosecuting a licensee before a professional board contact the board's head ex parte about settlement?
No. The Committee held that the agency head who sits in judgment on the matter is the equivalent of a judicial officer, so ex parte settlement communications by the prosecuting DAG, or by another…
Who is entitled to the interest earned on settlement funds held in an attorney trust account, and can the firm keep the 'float' after disbursement?
Interest on the client's portion of settlement funds belongs to the client; interest accrues to each party from the day of deposit based on the principal due to each. The firm keeping the 'float'…
Can the law partner of a municipal court judge serve as a public defender in a different municipality in the same county where the judge sits?
No. The court rules that bar a municipal judge from practicing in criminal, quasi-criminal, or penal matters extend to the judge's partners within the county where the judge's court is located, so…
Can a criminal defense attorney who negotiates the contract for a county probation officers' association keep practicing criminal law in that county's courts?
No. While he represents the probation officers' association, the attorney may not appear in the criminal courts of that county, because the dual role would erode public confidence that justice is…
Can an attorney holding real estate closing funds park them in a money-market or government securities fund like a Merrill Lynch Government Fund?
No. Funds held pending a real estate closing may be deposited only in a New Jersey financial institution (a bank, savings and loan association, credit union, or savings bank); a government…
Can an attorney who is an independent-contractor county counsel on specific civil matters also serve as a municipal public defender and appear in other municipal courts in the same county?
Yes. Because he is an independent contractor on specific civil cases, not part of the county's official family, and the county is not a party to his criminal or public-defender work, the Committee…
Can an attorney who sits as an unpaid member of a regional planning board represent residents in court challenging an ordinance of a municipality that belongs to that board?
Yes. An unpaid board member may bring a court challenge to a constituent municipality's ordinance, especially where the challenge aligns with the board's own position; he simply may not appear…
Can a law firm that serves as bond counsel to a municipality also represent private clients before that municipality's governing body or boards?
No. A firm acting as bond counsel for a municipality may not represent private interests before that municipality's governing body or agencies; the disqualification is firm-wide under RPC 1.10(a)…
Can a former deputy attorney general represent a private client before a licensing board he once advised, in a disciplinary matter that began during his government service but that he never worked on?
Yes. Because the former deputy attorney general had no actual or supervisory involvement in, and no knowledge of, the investigation, only the appearance of impropriety is at issue, and that is cured…
Can one attorney be both county counsel and a township prosecutor in that county, and can another be both a township solicitor and counsel to the county welfare board?
The Committee found no conflict in serving as both county counsel (civil) and township prosecutor (criminal), but held that the township solicitor could not also be county welfare board counsel and…
Can a city attorney who serves on the board of a legal services corporation defend the city against suits brought by that corporation's clients?
No. A city attorney who sits on the board of a regional legal services corporation may not defend the city in suits its clients bring against the city; the Committee concluded he should leave the board.
Can a lawyer require the other party to sign general releases of civil claims before agreeing to a mutual dismissal of municipal-court cross-complaints?
The Committee found no ethical violation. Where a defendant facing a criminal cross-complaint conditions a mutual dismissal on an exchange of civil releases, and no party threatened or used criminal…
Can a municipal prosecutor's law firm privately represent the same municipality's judge, or take fee-sharing referrals of the judge's negligence cases?
No. Both the municipal prosecutor's firm representing that municipality's judge in private matters and accepting fee-sharing referrals of the judge's negligence cases are improper, because the…
Can a lawyer arrange to pay a medical expert or consulting service a percentage of the client's recovery, and how must New Jersey counsel handle fee-sharing with pro hac vice counsel?
Counsel should not participate in a contingent-fee arrangement paying a medical consulting service or doctor a percentage of the recovery, as it contravenes the policy of maximizing the injured…
Can the attorney for a township zoning board defend both the board and the municipality when a resident sues to challenge a variance?
Yes. Where the township and its zoning board share mutual interests in defending the suit and have no grievances against each other, one attorney may defend both; RPC 1.7 does not change that…
Can county counsel also represent a municipal housing authority located within that same county?
No. Because a municipal housing authority is a creature of the municipality, and an attorney may not be counsel to both a municipality and the county in which it sits, the Committee held it…
Can a municipal court judge share in the criminal-case fees earned by a law partner or associate who practices in counties other than where the judge sits?
No. Although a partner or associate of a municipal court judge may practice criminal law outside the county where the judge sits, the judge may not share in the fees generated from that criminal…
Can a group of attorneys run lender-sponsored ads promoting that they can place loans at below-market fees with a particular lender?
No. The 'power broker' arrangement, in which a lender selects attorneys and pays for ads touting their access to below-market loan placement fees, is improper: it tends to mislead readers about the…
Can a lawyer represent both the maker of a promissory note and the guarantors in a suit, relying on the maker's authorization without ever consulting the guarantors?
No. The conflicting interests of the note's maker and its guarantors should have been apparent from the start, and a lawyer may not represent a client based on another person's purported…
Must an interstate law firm list all of its partners, including those not licensed in New Jersey, in the firm name on its New Jersey letterhead?
No. On remand, the Committee held that a firm name listing the resident New Jersey partners licensed in New Jersey complies with RPC 7.5(b), and the firm need not list partners who are not licensed…
May a New Jersey lawyer hold free public legal seminars, advertise them in newspapers, and later represent people who attended?
Yes. The opinion concluded a lawyer may conduct free public legal seminars and advertise them in print media, and may later accept employment from an attendee, provided the seminar serves as a…
May an attorney serve as counsel to a municipal sewerage authority while his law partner represents a non-profit housing corporation that is suing that authority, and may the attorney stay in the civic club that sponsors the housing corporation?
No to both. The opinion concluded the appearance of impropriety bars the arrangement even after the partner withdrew from the pending suit, so the two lawyers had to choose which client to keep; and…
May a law firm hire a paralegal who previously worked for a firm it is currently opposing in litigation?
No. The opinion concluded that hiring a paralegal formerly employed by a firm with which the prospective employer is presently involved in adversarial matters is improper; the disqualification rule…
May one attorney represent both a local K-8 school district and the overlapping regional high school district?
As issued, the opinion concluded no: it would breach professional ethics for one attorney (or his partner or associate) to represent both a municipal school board and the regional school board,…
May a non-profit legal-services project report client background information to the public and private sources that fund it without violating client confidentiality?
As issued, the opinion concluded yes: the background and eligibility data the project reported to its funders did not reveal client confidences or secrets under the confidentiality rule. The New…
If a lawyer becomes 'of counsel' to a firm in the same county where his son is the full-time county prosecutor, is the firm barred from criminal practice in that county?
Yes. The opinion concluded that because the father is precluded from criminal practice in the county where his son is the prosecutor, the firm to which he becomes 'of counsel' is likewise barred,…
May a lawyer run a for-profit corporation that puts on public educational programs about the law, advertise the participating attorneys, and represent attendees afterward?
Yes. The opinion concluded that advertisement of the contemplated educational programs in print media may be done and that attorneys who participate as lecturers may accept employment from…
May a law firm join a for-profit business networking association whose members exchange sales leads and referrals?
Yes. The opinion concluded that joining such a business-lead association does not amount to giving compensation to the organization to recommend or secure clients, likening it to membership in…
May a lawyer use a bank's interest-bearing master/subsidiary 'Super Now' escrow account for client trust funds, and can the bank's bookkeeping access to client data be squared with confidentiality?
The opinion concluded the proposed segregated master-and-subsidiary escrow account complied with the trust-account rule, with interest belonging to the client, but that giving bank clerks client…
May municipal counsel defend individual municipal officials sued for willful civil-rights violations under 42 U.S.C. 1983, and may one lawyer defend several of them?
No. The opinion concluded municipal counsel should not defend individual officials in a willful Section 1983 action, because the municipality's potential indemnification claim makes their interests…
May a New Jersey lawyer practice under, and use on her letterhead, the name of her out-of-state firm that also has a New Jersey office?
Yes, under the rule as amended in 1984. The opinion concluded that a firm with offices in more than one jurisdiction may use the same name in each, so long as the letterhead clearly shows the New…
May a law firm represent a wife in a divorce when a lawyer who left the firm once handled an unrelated pre-marital corporate realty matter for the husband?
Yes. The opinion concluded the firm could represent the wife, because no remaining member of the firm had any knowledge of the husband's realty matter, the realty was acquired before the marriage…
May a lawyer serve at the same time as assistant county counsel and as mayor of a municipality within that county?
No. The opinion concluded that because In re Opinion 415 bars a lawyer from being counsel to both a county and a municipality within it, an assistant county counsel cannot simultaneously serve as…
May a municipal attorney defend both the municipality and its officials when they are sued for fraud, and when must special counsel be brought in?
The opinion concluded a municipal attorney may not defend both the municipality and its officials where the charges are fraud or willful misrepresentation, and that even when defending only the…
May a municipal prosecutor also prosecute complaints in the same municipal court on behalf of a paying private client (the complaining witness)?
Yes. The opinion concluded there was no impropriety in a municipal prosecutor prosecuting a matter in his own municipal court on behalf of a private client, because in both roles he appears on…
May a New Jersey firm list an out-of-state firm it merely exchanges referrals with on its letterhead as 'Of Counsel'?
No. The opinion concluded that listing a Pennsylvania firm (with which the New Jersey firm only exchanged referrals, not a partnership) on the letterhead, whether by firm name or by its individual…
If a lawyer acts in a private matrimonial mediation service for a couple, may the lawyer later represent one spouse in their divorce?
No. The opinion concluded that a lawyer who participates in a private matrimonial mediation service, by advising both spouses on equitable distribution or drafting their settlement, is thereafter…
Can a New Jersey lawyer represent a buyer or seller in a real estate deal when the lawyer's spouse is the listing or selling broker, if the client consents after full disclosure?
No. The opinion concluded that when the lawyer's spouse is the listing or selling broker, the lawyer may not represent either party even with full disclosure and consent, because the spouse's…
If a New Jersey lawyer is barred from a county legal post because of an actual conflict, can the lawyer's partner take that post instead, and what if the conflict arises from the lawyer's seat on a county board?
No. The opinion concluded that where an actual conflict bars a lawyer (a municipal court judge, or a member of a county community college commission) from serving as assistant county counsel, the…
Can two New Jersey lawyers who share office space also share a computer and word-processing system, and still represent opposing clients?
Yes. The opinion concluded that two lawyers in adjacent offices who jointly use word-processing and computer facilities are not thereby 'office associates,' so they are not disqualified from…
Can a New Jersey law firm list an affiliated out-of-state law firm by name on its letterhead?
Yes. The opinion concluded a New Jersey firm may show the name of an affiliated Pennsylvania firm on its letterhead under its Philadelphia office listing, noting the affiliation, so long as it is…
Can a lawyer who works for a law school form a partnership with a lawyer who regularly sues that law school on behalf of a union?
The opinion concluded the arrangement carries a definite appearance of a conflict of interest, so an adversarial relationship between the proposed partnership and the law school that employs one…
Can a lawyer both defend a client on a municipal-court charge and prosecute the cross-complaint that client filed against the same complaining witness?
Yes. The opinion concluded there is no conflict because the lawyer represents only his own client, both as defendant on the charge against him and as prosecutor of the client's own complaint, and a…
Can a lawyer join a firm that represents casino clients before the Casino Control Commission when the lawyer's spouse is an assistant counsel at that Commission?
Yes. The opinion concluded the employment is ethical and the firm may keep representing casino clients, as long as the spouse who is assistant counsel to the Commission stays out of any matter…
Can a lawyer file a new, unrelated lawsuit against someone the lawyer is still representing in a pending collection matter?
No. The opinion concluded that where the lawyer's representation in an earlier matter is still ongoing, the lawyer may not bring a new unrelated action against that client, and even a terminated…
Can a law firm that used to defend a municipality's workers' compensation claims now represent claimants bringing comp claims against that municipality?
It depends on each claim. The opinion concluded the firm may not take a comp claim against the former-client municipality where the subject matter is substantially related to claims it defended and…
Can a lawyer advertise as a specialist in the legal problems of the elderly and offer reduced or no fees to seniors?
No, as proposed. The opinion concluded the advertisement was misleading and improper because it promised reduced or no fees without stating any definite fee terms, creating unjustified expectations,…
When coverage is disputed, can the lawyer the insurer hired to defend the insured also bring the insurer's declaratory-judgment action against that same insured?
No. The opinion concluded the lawyer the carrier hires to file a protective defense pleading for the insured may not appear for the carrier against the insured in the coverage declaratory-judgment…
Can a lawyer tell the media the amount of a personal-injury settlement when that amount is not part of the public record?
No. The opinion concluded it is unethical for a lawyer to disclose to the media the details of a personal-injury settlement that are not a matter of public record, because doing so can reveal a…
Can one law firm represent a county utilities authority while a partner represents a municipality that belongs to that authority, and does hiring separate special counsel cure the conflict?
No. The opinion concluded a firm may not represent a county utilities authority while a partner represents a member municipality, and neither appointing separate special counsel nor forming a…
Can a lawyer share office space with a non-lawyer business, like a mortgage company or an insurance underwriter?
Yes. The opinion concluded a lawyer may share office space with a non-lawyer business so long as the separate practices and identities are maintained and client confidences are preserved, and it…
Can a criminal defense lawyer privately represent an assistant prosecutor, county investigator, or county detective in personal matters while practicing criminal defense in the same county?
No. The opinion concluded that members of the local criminal defense bar should not undertake private representation of a prosecutor's staff (assistant prosecutors, county investigators, county…
Does a lawyer who volunteers as a community mediator have to report crime, fraud, or child abuse learned during a mediation session to authorities?
No. The opinion concluded a lawyer serving as a mediator in a voluntary community program is not required by the disciplinary rules to disclose information learned as a mediator, because no…
Does a board of education's attorney have a conflict of interest when his wife is a teacher paid out of the same school budget he defends?
Not on these facts. The opinion concluded there was little likelihood of any direct conflict where the school board's attorney supported a budget that funded his wife's teaching salary, finding the…
Can a one-lawyer professional corporation form a partnership with an individual attorney and keep a firm name that reads as individuals' names?
Yes. The opinion concluded that a partnership made up of a one-attorney professional corporation and an individual lawyer, using a firm name that reflects individuals' names consistent with the…
Can a lawyer let a client send out collection letters on the lawyer's stationery and name when the client, not the lawyer, runs the collection process?
No. The opinion concluded a lawyer should not lend his name to a client's collection work at all, and disapproved a scheme of escalating form letters on the lawyer's stationery where the client…
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Legal ethics opinions from the New Jersey Supreme Court Advisory Committee on Professional Ethics interpret the rules of professional conduct for working lawyers, in response to inquiries from members and committees. The Supreme Court of New Jersey has held that the Advisory Committee's published opinions are binding on the ethics committees that decide grievances (R. 1:19-6), and that a lawyer who does not follow one "does so at his peril" (Higgins v. Advisory Committee on Professional Ethics, 73 N.J. 123 (1977)). The Court can modify or vacate an opinion. Source. Every opinion above has a plain-English question and short answer, plus a link to the original source on the bar's site.