Can a lawyer's firm represent a party in a civil case arising from a traffic matter the lawyer heard as a substitute judge?
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This page answers the general question as of 1985. Ezel answers yours: whether it's allowed on your facts, under the current Virginia Rules of Professional Conduct, with citations.
Plain-English summary
The committee considered a lawyer who had acted as a substitute judge and heard a traffic case, and whether another member of the same law firm could represent an insured defendant in a civil suit that arose out of the same traffic accident. The committee concluded it is not improper for a firm member other than the lawyer who sat as the substitute judge to undertake that representation, citing DR 9-101(A) and its prior LE Op. 520.
Currency note
This opinion was issued in 1985, under Virginia's former Code of Professional Responsibility, before the Virginia State Bar's adoption of the Rules of Professional Conduct effective January 1, 2000. The committee note records that current Rule 1.11 would now allow an "ethics screen" in this circumstance. 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 Treat this page as historical context, not current guidance.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 firm take a case related to a matter one of its lawyers heard as a substitute judge?
A: Under this 1985 opinion, yes, where the representation is handled by a firm member other than the lawyer who sat as the substitute judge on the related traffic case.
Q: Could the lawyer who sat as the substitute judge handle the civil suit himself?
A: The committee approved representation by a different firm member; the holding turns on the matter being handled by someone other than the lawyer who heard the traffic case.
Background and rules framework
The opinion applies the former Code's DR 9-101(A), barring a lawyer from accepting private employment in a matter on whose merits the lawyer acted in a judicial capacity. The committee note maps the question onto current Virginia Rule 1.11 and its allowance of an ethics screen, the subject covered by ABA Model Rule 1.12 on former judges and adjudicative officers.
Citations and references
Rules of Professional Conduct:
- DR 9-101(A) (no private employment in a matter the lawyer judged) (former Code)
- Virginia Rule 1.11 / ABA Model Rule 1.12 (former judge or adjudicative officer; ethics screens)
Other opinions cited:
- LE Op. 520 (relied on by the committee)
See also
- VA LEO 847: Lawyers Serving as Part-Time Hearing Officers
- VA LEO 814: A Lawyer's Personal Interest in the Litigation
- VA LEO 729: A Lawyer-Partner Who Will Testify for the Client
Source
- Landing page: https://vsb.org/Site/about/rules-regulations/leo-opinions.aspx
- Original PDF: https://www.vsb.org/common/Uploaded%20files/LEOs/0686.pdf
Original opinion text
Reproduced from the official source for research purposes. The linked source is authoritative.
LEGAL ETHICS OPINION 686
APPEARANCE OF IMPROPRIETY –
REPRESENTATION BY FIRM OR
SUBSTITUTE JUDGE.
It is not improper for a member of a law firm, other than the lawyer who acted as the
substitute judge and heard the traffic case, to undertake the representation of an insured
defendant in a civil suit which arose as a result of the traffic accident.
[ DR:9-101(A), LE Op. 520]
Committee Opinion
May 30, 1985
Legal Ethics Committee Notes. – Rule 1.11 would now allow an “ethics screen” in
this circumstance.
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