If a bankruptcy client hides an inheritance and refuses to disclose it, must the lawyer reveal it to the court?

Plain-English summary

The inquiry concerned a client who obtained an inheritance after filing a bankruptcy petition and refused to disclose the inheritance to the court despite the lawyer's advice to do so. The question was whether the lawyer was required to disclose the information over the client's objection.

The committee concluded that RPC 1.6 makes the information a client confidence. It read RPC 3.3(a)(2) to mean that the lawyer could not disclose that information to the court if doing so would be prohibited by RPC 1.6. The committee added one qualification: if the client's failure to disclose the information to the court constitutes a crime, then RPC 1.6(b)(1) would permit the lawyer to reveal confidential information to the extent reasonably necessary to prevent the client from committing the crime.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 1985, before the 2006 revisions to the Washington Rules of Professional Conduct. The interaction between the confidentiality rule and the duty of candor to a tribunal has since been revised in both the Model Rules and the Washington rules. Treat this page as historical context, not current guidance.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: Is a post-petition inheritance the client refuses to disclose protected as a confidence?

A: The committee concluded that RPC 1.6 makes such information a client confidence.

Q: Can the lawyer disclose it to the bankruptcy court over the client's objection?

A: The committee read RPC 3.3(a)(2) to mean the lawyer could not disclose the information to the court if disclosure would be prohibited by RPC 1.6.

Q: Is there any situation where the lawyer may reveal it?

A: The committee said that if the client's failure to disclose constitutes a crime, RPC 1.6(b)(1) would permit the lawyer to reveal confidential information to the extent reasonably necessary to prevent the client from committing the crime.

Background and rules framework

The opinion interprets Washington RPC 1.6 (confidentiality of information), including RPC 1.6(b)(1)'s exception for preventing a client crime, together with RPC 3.3(a)(2) (the duty of candor toward a tribunal as it then stood). These correspond to Model Rules 1.6 and 3.3. As the committee read the rules at the time, RPC 3.3(a)(2) did not require disclosure where RPC 1.6 prohibited it, while the crime-prevention exception in RPC 1.6(b)(1) supplied the one path to revealing the information.

Citations and references

Rules of Professional Conduct:

• Washington RPC 1.6 (confidentiality of information), corresponding to Model Rule 1.6.
• Washington RPC 1.6(b)(1) (disclosure to prevent a client crime).
• Washington RPC 3.3(a)(2) (candor toward a tribunal), corresponding to Model Rule 3.3.

See also

• WSBA Ethics Op. 909: confidences and disclosure that would reduce a client's workers' comp benefits
• ABA Formal Op. 93-376: a lawyer's obligation where a client lies in discovery
• ABA Formal Op. 93-375: disclosure adverse to a client in a bank examination

Source

• Landing page: https://ao.wsba.org/print.aspx?ID=53

Original opinion text

Reproduced from the official source for research purposes. The linked source is authoritative.

Advisory Opinion: 942
Year Issued: 1985
RPC(s): RPC 1.6; 3.3(a)(2)
Subject: Client confidence or secret; disclosure to court

[The question concerned a client who obtained an inheritance after filing a bankruptcy petition, who refused to disclose the inheritance to the court despite the lawyer's advice to do so.] Regarding your inquiry concerning refusal by a client to disclose information to a bankruptcy court and whether the lawyer is required to disclose the information over the client's objections, the Committee was of the opinion that RPC 1.6 makes such information a client confidence and that, pursuant to RPC 3.3(a)(2), a lawyer could not disclose that information to the court if to do so would be prohibited by RPC 1.6. The Committee noted that if the failure by the client to disclose the information to the court constitutes a crime, then RPC 1.6(b)(1) would permit the lawyer to reveal confidential information to the extent reasonably necessary to prevent the client from committing the crime.