When a lawyer leaves a firm, can he mail office-opening announcements to the firm's clients he personally served?
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This page answers the general question as of 1975. Ezel answers yours: whether it's allowed on your facts, under the current New York Rules of Professional Conduct, with citations.
Plain-English summary
A lawyer asked whether he could send announcements about opening his own office to clients of the firm he had been associated with, where he had personally performed professional services for those clients, and whether such clients could then retain him. The committee answered yes on both points. Following N.Y. State 83 (1968), N.Y. City 384 (1936), and N.Y. County 109 (1916), it found nothing improper in a former employee sending formal announcements of his new office to those former-firm clients to whom he is personally known and for whom he performed professional services, subject to the limitations in DR 2-102 and N.Y. State 305 (1973).
On the question of who may handle ongoing work, the committee distinguished new matters from matters the former firm had worked on. As to new matters, the client always has the right to choose an attorney. As to matters the former firm had handled, the committee referred to N.Y. State 305 (1973), which it said treats the subject extensively and lists the authorities, limitations, and restrictions, and directed that the opinion be read in full.
Currency note
This opinion was issued in 1975, before New York replaced the Code of Professional Responsibility with the Rules of Professional Conduct in 2009 (lawyer communications and announcements are now governed by Rules 7.2 and 7.3, and duties on terminating a representation by Rule 1.16). 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 Treat this page as historical context, not current guidance.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, deadline, or requirement mentioned here.
Common questions
Q: Can a departing lawyer announce his new office to clients of his old firm?
A: Under this opinion, yes, as to clients he knew personally and served, sending a formal announcement is not improper, subject to DR 2-102 and N.Y. State 305 (1973).
Q: Who decides whether the client follows the lawyer or stays with the firm?
A: Per the opinion, the client always has the right to choose an attorney for new matters; for matters the former firm had already worked on, the committee pointed to N.Y. State 305 (1973) for the governing limits.
Background and rules framework
The opinion applies DR 2-102 of the then-current New York Code, governing professional notices and announcements, and relies on N.Y. State 305 (1973) for the treatment of clients on matters handled by the former firm. The current analogues are Rule 7.2 and Rule 7.3 (communications about a lawyer's services) and Rule 1.16 (declining or terminating representation), which together address a departing lawyer's notices and the client's freedom to choose counsel.
Citations and references
Rules of Professional Conduct:
- MR 7.2 (communications concerning a lawyer's services)
- MR 7.3 (solicitation of clients)
- MR 1.16 (declining or terminating representation)
- NY DR 2-102 (professional notices and announcements)
Other opinions cited:
- N.Y. State 83 (1968): announcements by a departing lawyer
- N.Y. State 305 (1973): clients on matters handled by the former firm
- N.Y. City 384 (1936): announcements to known clients
See also
- NY State Bar Op. 439: A lawyer-inspired news story as indirect advertising
- NY State Bar Op. 441: A fee-schedule brochure for office visitors
Source
- Landing page: https://nysba.org/opinion-411/
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