New York State Bar Association Ethics Opinions
Free plain-English summaries of legal ethics opinions issued by the New York State Bar Association, with full citations and source links on every page.
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Can two solo New York lawyers, each practicing as a PLLC, form a law firm by creating a joint venture of their PLLCs?
Yes, on the facts given. Two PLLCs may create a joint venture that functions as a law firm, using a name that discloses the joint-venture relationship; the venture is a 'firm,' which matters for…
Can a New York lawyer pay settlement proceeds to a third party at the client's request instead of to the client directly?
Yes. Rule 1.15(c)(4) does not prevent a lawyer from distributing settlement funds to a third person when the client clearly directs it; the lawyer should tell the client the third party will then…
Must a New York lawyer disclose that the client has been secretly reading the opposing party's privileged emails?
Generally no. The lawyer's knowledge is confidential under Rule 1.6, and absent an exception (the client is committing a crime or fraud that only disclosure can prevent, or other law requires it)…
Can a law firm's non-attorney employee put a J.D. degree or the title 'Legal Project Manager' on a firm business card?
Only if the card makes clear the employee is not admitted to practice law. Listing a J.D. or a title like 'Legal Project Manager' may imply the person is a lawyer, so the card must expressly…
Can a New York lawyer take client referrals from a non-lawyer firm and be paid an undisclosed cut of the flat fee the client pays that firm?
No. A lawyer may not accept referrals where the legal fee, in an amount never disclosed to the client, is taken from the fee the client pays a non-lawyer firm; that violates the duty to communicate…
Can a lawyer serve as attorney for a child when the lawyer's spouse, a public defender, represents another party in the case?
Yes, unless the circumstances create a Rule 1.7(a)(2) personal-interest or Rule 1.10(h) spousal conflict and the child has no representative who can consent to it. A child cannot consent to the…
Can a New York lawyer store client data on off-site backup tapes, and can electronic copies satisfy the record-retention rules?
Yes to off-site backup tapes if the lawyer takes reasonable care to protect confidentiality. Whether electronic copies suffice depends on the record: some items (such as bank statements and canceled…
Can solo lawyers who share office space also share one computer for confidential client information if they have separate passwords?
Yes, if they take reasonable care. Office-sharing solo lawyers may use a shared computer for client confidences only if the actual security measures, including password systems and their use,…
Can lawyers who own a separate nonlegal business buy marketing leads for that business, even though their law firm could not buy leads for itself?
Yes, if the nonlegal entity has no lawyers, operates wholly separately from the firm, and discloses in writing that it provides no legal services. The firm is then not subject to the rules for that…
Can a law firm put logo-branded promotional gifts in a hospital's welcome package for all patients?
Yes. A firm may include logo-branded items like pens or calendars in a hospital welcome package for all patients; gifts marked only with the firm's name and contact information are not advertising,…
Can a firm list a departing former name partner as 'Special Counsel' on its letterhead, and what does that title do to conflicts?
Only if the departing lawyer is actually available to the firm for consultation on a regular and continuing basis. If the title fits, the lawyer is 'associated' with the firm and his conflicts are…
Can a public defender or assistant public defender keep a separate private practice in the same Criminal Court where they appear for the office?
Yes. A public defender or assistant public defender may represent private clients in a separate practice in the same Criminal Court where they appear in their public capacity, provided…
Can a New York law firm pay an of-counsel lawyer's compensation to a Subchapter S corporation that a non-lawyer spouse partly owns?
Not as compensation for legal services, because a professional service corporation organized to practice law cannot have non-lawyer shareholders. The firm may pay that corporation as a third party…
Can a New York lawyer run a law practice and a real estate brokerage from the same office and market them together?
Yes; the lawyer may operate both from one office and send joint mailings as long as the marketing is truthful and not misleading, but may not serve as both lawyer and broker in the same real estate…
Can a New York lawyer put a photo on a business card and list recommended plumbers, realtors, or accountants on it?
Yes; a photo of the lawyer is permitted (an actor portraying a lawyer must be disclosed), and the lawyer may list recommended service providers if a disclaimer makes clear there is no affiliation or…
Can a New York solo practitioner who employs a paralegal name the firm 'Smith and Associates'?
No. Because the solo has no other lawyers, 'and Associates' would falsely suggest the firm includes additional lawyers; the opinion finds it misleading under Rules 7.5(b) and (c) and 8.4(c).
Can a nonprofit legal services organization use 'Project' or 'Law Center' in its name under the New York rules?
Yes; a qualified legal assistance organization may use 'Law Center,' and may use 'Project' if the name otherwise signals the group's law-related work and is not otherwise misleading.
Can a New York lawyer team up with an insurance agency to offer clients a combined legal-and-nonlegal service package?
No, not as an exclusive ongoing arrangement. The opinion holds Rule 5.8 bars a systematic cooperative legal/non-legal venture with a provider whose profession is not on the Appellate Divisions'…
Can a patent attorney who became a USPTO patent examiner still call himself 'Patent Attorney' on a business card?
Not without disclosure. Because his USPTO registration is on administrative-leave/inactive status and he can no longer represent others, the opinion finds the bare 'Patent Attorney' designation…
Can a New York lawyer take foreclosure-case referrals from a non-lawyer company that telephoned the clients and collects a fee covering the lawyer's services?
No. The opinion finds the arrangement flawed on several grounds: the company's telephone solicitation is imputed to the lawyer, the client's single payment to the company effectively shares a legal…
Can a New York lawyer who belongs to a union serve on the union's legal-fee reimbursement panel and represent a fellow union member?
Yes to both, with conditions. The lawyer may join the panel and represent a co-worker in a real estate deal covered by the plan, subject to Rule 1.8(f) third-party-payment requirements and, for…
Can a criminal defense lawyer keep representing a client when her law partner is in business with a part-time assistant DA in the prosecuting office?
Yes, on these facts. The opinion treats the partner's business relationship as a personal-interest conflict imputed to the firm under Rule 1.10(a), finds no significant risk to the partner's…
Can a lawyer serve as a referee in a foreclosure case when one of the lawyer's clients holds a judgment on the property?
Yes, with conditions. The opinion permits it if the lawyer makes any needed disclosures, has no circumstances that would let impartiality be reasonably questioned under the judicial-conduct rules,…
Can a New York lawyer give a bank or law enforcement the emails and documents from a 'client' who turned out to be running a counterfeit-check scam?
Yes. If the lawyer reasonably concludes the purported client was trying to defraud the lawyer rather than obtain legal services, that person is neither a client nor a prospective client, so the…
Can a lawyer take a case that might require impleading people the lawyer used to represent?
Yes, if the new matter is not substantially related to the prior representations, even though impleading former clients is materially adverse to them; but the lawyer still may not use or disclose…
Can a New York lawyer advertise that they will 'stop your foreclosure'?
No. An unqualified claim that a lawyer can 'stop' a foreclosure is false, deceptive, and misleading under Rule 7.1. Even a reworded, accurate version would need the required 'prior results do not…
Can a New York solo practitioner name the firm using only their initials, like 'JDR Law'?
No. A firm name made up only of the lawyer's initials is a trade name barred by Rule 7.5(b), because the initials are not the lawyer's legal name. The same words may be usable as a motto alongside…
Can a New York lawyer who also works as a real estate broker represent a party in the same deal, or in a deal handled by a broker at the lawyer's brokerage office?
A lawyer may never serve as both attorney and broker in the same transaction; that conflict is non-consentable. A lawyer employed at a brokerage may represent a party in a deal another office broker…
Can a New York lawyer post an educational legal video online and hand out flyers inviting the public to watch it?
Yes. Producing a bona fide educational legal video and distributing flyers inviting people to view it is generally not advertising or solicitation. But if the video or the flyers urge viewers to…
Can a New York law firm pay a non-lawyer marketing employee a bonus based on how many clients they bring in?
Yes, a firm may pay a non-lawyer marketing employee a bonus tied to the number of clients obtained through advertising, as long as the bonus is not calculated from the fees those clients pay. The…
Can a New York lawyer acting as the broker in a real estate deal throw in free legal services if the client is told they may hire separate counsel?
No. A lawyer acting and being paid as the broker may not offer free legal services to a party in the same transaction, even with disclosure that the party may retain separate counsel; the broker's…
Can a New York law firm's website link to the website of a nonlegal consulting business the firm formed, and vice versa?
Yes. A law firm's website and the website of a nonlegal entity the firm formed may link to each other. If a link's primary purpose is to facilitate retention of the firm, it is an advertisement…
If one lawyer on a Legal Aid conflicts panel has a conflict, are all the other panel members disqualified too?
No. As long as conflicts-panel lawyers are independently engaged by, and independently serve, their indigent clients, the panel is not a 'law firm' under Rule 1.0(h), so one member's conflict is not…
Can a New York lawyer accept stock or an equity interest in a client as payment for legal services?
Yes. A lawyer may take an equity interest in a client or the client's company as a fee if the deal satisfies Rule 1.8(a)'s business-transaction safeguards, is not excessive under Rule 1.5(a), and…
Can a New York lawyer run or post on a blog that criticizes another lawyer's professional conduct?
Yes. The Rules do not prohibit a lawyer from hosting or participating in a blog that publishes factually accurate criticism of another lawyer's professional conduct, provided the criticism is…
Can a New York lawyer work from a New York office as an employee of a foreign firm that has non-lawyer owners or managers?
No. A New York lawyer may not practice law principally in New York as an employee of an out-of-state (or foreign) entity that has non-lawyer owners or managers, because Rule 5.4 bars sharing fees…
Can a New York matrimonial lawyer triple the hourly rate to cover the risk of nonpayment, take a confession of judgment or security interest, and amend the retainer?
The risk of nonpayment alone does not justify charging a multiple of the normal hourly rate. A lawyer may take a confession of judgment for fees already earned and a security interest in client…
When a lawyer serves on a town board that controls the town court's budget, can other lawyers in the firm still appear in that court?
Generally yes. A board member's bar on appearing in the town Justice Court is not automatically imputed to the rest of the firm, except where the facts make public suspicion of undue influence…
Can a New York lawyer be listed in a bar association's online member directory and appear as a 'featured attorney' on its website?
Yes. A member may be listed in the association's online directory if the listing complies with Rule 7.1, and may appear as a randomly selected 'featured attorney' only if the page carries a…
Can a New York lawyer keep a client's identity secret and use the escrow account to make an anonymous charitable donation for the client?
Yes. A lawyer must keep a client's identity confidential when the client asks, and may run an anonymous donation through the escrow account, provided the lawyer makes no false statement, segregates…
Can a New York lawyer share legal fees with a non-profit organization that is not a law firm?
No. New York rejected the ABA Model Rule 5.4(a)(4) exception for sharing court-awarded fees with public-interest groups, so under Rule 5.4 a lawyer may not share legal fees with a non-profit…
When a firm hires a new lawyer who learned an adversary's confidences while working as a paralegal, is the firm disqualified, or can screening cure it?
Rules 1.9 and 1.10 do not apply to confidences acquired solely as a paralegal, so the conflict is not imputed to the hiring firm; the firm must instead supervise, instruct, run a conflicts check,…
Can a lawyer seeking restitution for a crime victim contact the subject of the criminal investigation directly when the subject has a criminal defense lawyer?
Not without first asking. Because the civil restitution claim is closely related to the criminal investigation, the victim's lawyer must inquire of the subject's criminal counsel; direct contact is…
If one jointly represented co-defendant revokes a conflict waiver, can the lawyer keep representing the other client?
It depends on the circumstances. With no advance agreement covering revocation, whether the lawyer may continue for the non-revoking client turns on the nature of the conflict, whether the revoking…
Can a lawyer pay a marketing firm based on the number of clients it introduces?
No. Under Rule 7.2, a lawyer may pay the reasonable cost of marketing, but may not tie a marketing firm's compensation to the number of potential or actual clients it introduces, because that gives…
Can a lawyer who has represented an individual officer or shareholder also represent the closely held corporation, and vice versa?
Yes, if any conflicts are consentable. Representing both a corporation and its director, officer, or shareholder can create conflicts under Rules 1.7 and 1.9, but consentable conflicts can be cured…
Can an Assistant County Attorney serve as a mediator in a case where another lawyer from the same office represents the agency, and what conflicts arise?
Yes, with disclosure. An ACA may mediate a Child Permanency Mediation in which another ACA represents the county DSS, but must disclose his office connection; the ACA representing DSS has a personal…
Can a lawyer answer legal questions in chat rooms or on social media and offer to take the person as a client?
A lawyer may give general answers (not individual advice) to legal questions on real-time or interactive sites like chat rooms, but may not solicit there. If a person specifically asks to retain the…
Does a debt-collection lawyer give prohibited legal advice to an unrepresented debtor by including a legally mandated statute-of-limitations notice in a collection letter?
No. Including a notice whose exact wording is prescribed by law, such as New York City's required statement that the limitations period on a debt has expired, is not 'legal advice' to an…
Can a New York lawyer sell discounted legal services through a 'deal of the day' or group-coupon website like Groupon?
Yes, if the ad is not misleading and discloses that no lawyer-client relationship forms until the lawyer checks for conflicts and competence. The lawyer must fully refund a coupon buyer who cannot…
Can a law firm provide or subcontract lien-search services for its clients, and what can it charge?
Yes, but a firm may not bill clients more than its actual cost for a third-party search, and when it performs lien searches itself or through an affiliate the conduct rules apply to the nonlegal…
Can a lawyer oppose a lawyer from the firm where the lawyer's spouse is a partner, and is that conflict imputed to the spouse's whole firm?
Only with the client's informed written consent. A lawyer opposing a five-lawyer firm in which her spouse is senior partner has a personal-interest conflict under Rule 1.7(a)(2); the opposing lawyer…
Can a lawyer personally serve legal process on a party the lawyer knows is represented by counsel?
Yes. Service of process is authorized by law, so the no-contact rule does not bar it; the lawyer may confirm identity and ask for an acknowledgment of receipt, but may not go beyond service to…
Can a full-time prosecutor accept appointment to a court referee panel and oversee foreclosure proceedings?
Yes. No per se rule bars a full-time Assistant District Attorney from serving as a foreclosure referee, but Rule 1.7(a)(2) conflicts must be avoided case by case, and Rule 1.12 restrictions may…
Can a lawyer take part in a home sale where the price is grossed up to match a seller's concession but the gross-up is not disclosed?
No. If the lender refuses to let the documents disclose that the sale price was increased by the same amount as the seller's concession, the undisclosed gross-up is a misrepresentation under Rule…
Can a lawyer refer a client to a title company the lawyer has a financial interest in, and still represent the client in the same deal?
Yes to the referral, but only if the title company does purely ministerial work. If the company performs non-ministerial tasks (such as title insurance or recommendations), the lawyer's…
When spouses at different firms end up on opposite sides of a case, is the conflict imputed to their colleagues, and can it be waived?
Not automatically. A Rule 1.10(h) spousal conflict is not automatically imputed to colleagues in either firm, but may be imputed on the facts; where imputed, in civil matters the conflict is often…
Can a lawyer admitted in New York and based in DC share New York litigation fees with a non-lawyer partner in a DC firm?
Yes, ordinarily. New York Rule 5.4 bars fee-sharing and non-lawyer partnerships, but under the Rule 8.5 choice-of-law analysis, a lawyer who principally practices in a jurisdiction that allows such…
Can a New York lawyer's website include links to banks, real estate companies, or other businesses?
Yes. A lawyer may include informational links to other businesses' websites as long as neither the link nor the linked content creates confusion or misrepresentation; reciprocal links require more…
Can a New York law firm pay a non-lawyer marketer a bonus based on the new business they bring in?
A firm may employ a non-lawyer marketer who does only the advertising and solicitation a lawyer could do, and may pay a profit-sharing bonus tied to overall firm profits or a percentage of base…
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Legal ethics opinions from the New York State Bar Association interpret the rules of professional conduct for working lawyers, in response to inquiries from members and committees. They are advisory, 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.