My client accepted a settlement offer and now wants to back out and keep litigating. Can I withdraw from the representation?

Plain-English summary

The inquiring attorney sought advice concerning the attorney's ethical obligations where the attorney's client had previously accepted a settlement offer but now wished to continue with the litigation.

The panel took the position that if the client wishes to breach a settlement contract, the attorney may withdraw from representation under Rhode Island Rule of Professional Conduct 1.16. The panel quoted Rule 1.16(b)(3), which permits a lawyer to withdraw where withdrawal can be accomplished without material adverse effect on the client's interests, or where the client insists upon pursuing an objective that the lawyer considers repugnant or imprudent.

The panel noted that a client's acceptance of a settlement offer creates a binding contract. It concluded that if the client wishes to repudiate the settlement contract, the attorney may properly withdraw under Rule 1.16(b)(3) if the attorney considers the client's objectives to be "imprudent" or "repugnant."

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 1991, after the Rhode Island Supreme Court adopted the Model Rules of Professional Conduct effective November 15, 1988, and it applies Rule 1.16 as then in force. The Rhode Island Supreme Court later revised the Rules of Professional Conduct in 2007 as part of the nationwide Ethics 2000 process, which renumbered and amended several provisions. 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 Treat this page as historical context, not current guidance.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 mentioned here.

Common questions

Q: Is an accepted settlement offer binding on the client?

A: Under this opinion, yes. The panel noted that a client's acceptance of a settlement offer creates a binding contract.

Q: Can a lawyer withdraw if the client wants to back out of a settlement?

A: The panel concluded the attorney may properly withdraw under Rule 1.16(b)(3) if the attorney considers the client's objective of repudiating the settlement to be imprudent or repugnant.

Q: What standard governs the withdrawal here?

A: Rule 1.16(b)(3) permits withdrawal where the client insists upon pursuing an objective the lawyer considers repugnant or imprudent, which the panel applied to the client's wish to repudiate the settlement.

Background and rules framework

The opinion applies Rule 1.16 (Declining or Terminating Representation), corresponding to Model Rule 1.16. The panel quoted Rule 1.16(b)(3)'s permissive-withdrawal ground for a client's insistence on a repugnant or imprudent objective, and treated the client's wish to breach a binding settlement contract as fitting that ground.

Citations and references

Rules of Professional Conduct:

• MR 1.16 (declining or terminating representation)
• RI RPC 1.16(b)(3)

Statutes:

• None cited.

Cases:

• None cited.

Other opinions cited:

• None cited.

See also

• RI EAP Op. 91-15: Withdrawing From a Nonpaying Client
• RI EAP Op. 95-08: Withdrawal Needs Court Leave
• RI EAP Op. 95-38: Withdrawing After Client's Fraud on Court

Source

• Landing page: https://www.courts.ri.gov/attorney-resources/Pages/Ethics-Advisory-Panel-default.aspx
• Original PDF: https://www.courts.ri.gov/Opinions/EAP%2091-21.pdf

Original opinion text

Best-effort transcription from a scanned PDF. Minor errors may remain; the linked PDF is authoritative.

Digest of Ethics Advisory Panel
Opinion #91-21, Request #153
Issued May 23, 1991

An attorney seeks Panel advice concerning the attorney's ethical obligations under circumstances in which the attorney's client previously accepted a settlement offer but now wishes to continue with the litigation.

The Panel takes the position that if the client wishes to breach a settlement contract, the attorney may withdraw from representation of that client under Rhode Island Rule of Professional Conduct 1.16.

Rule 1.16(b)(3) provides in pertinent part:

(b) . . . a lawyer may withdraw from representing a client if withdrawal can be accomplished without material adverse effect on the interests of the client, or if:

(3) the client insists upon pursuing an objective that the lawyer considers repugnant or imprudent.

The Panel notes that the acceptance by a client of a settlement offer creates a binding contract. The Panel is of the opinion that if the client wishes to repudiate the settlement contract, the attorney may properly withdraw from representation of that client under Rule 1.16(b)(3) if the attorney considers the objectives of this client to be "imprudent" or "repugnant".

Ethics Advisory Panel advice is protective in nature. There is no requirement that an attorney abide by a Panel opinion, but if he or she does, he or she is fully protected from any charge of impropriety.