Legal Ethics Opinions
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Can a law firm use a trade name like '[Field] Law Center' in Washington?
The committee concluded that the trade name '[field of practice] Law Center' does not violate RPC 7.5(a) if it is used in conjunction with a law practice of the nature described by the inquiring lawyer.
Can a lawyer accept a referral fee from an investment firm for sending clients to it?
The committee concluded that an arrangement paying the lawyer a fee based on referred clients' investments may violate several rules, including RPC 1.6, 1.7(b), 1.8(a), 1.8(f), 1.8(h), and 2.1, and…
Is a lawyer required to report another lawyer's misconduct to the bar in Washington?
The committee declined to address the hypothetical, because it could only arise in pending litigation (on which the committee does not comment) and because it does not opine on the ethics of lawyers…
Can a lawyer disclose that a former client who is a personal representative may be breaching fiduciary duties to the estate?
The committee concluded that RPC 1.6 prevents disclosure to the beneficiary unless the lawyer's belief that the personal representative intends to commit a crime or breach a fiduciary duty has a…
Can outside IT staff maintain a law office computer network that holds client confidences without client consent?
The committee concluded that letting an outside agency's technical personnel access a shared network for maintenance is permissible under RPC 1.6 without client consent, as long as those personnel…
Can a law firm use a trade name that includes its field of practice in Washington?
The committee concluded that the trade name 'All American [field of practice] Service' does not imply specialization but simply states an area of law the firm practices, and that this is consistent…
Can a lawyer send a self-published lawyer-liability newsletter to judges they appear before?
The committee concluded that sending the proposed newsletter to judges and justices should be allowed, assuming the lawyer is careful to comply with RPC 1.6 (confidentiality) and RPC 3.5 (ex parte…
Must a lawyer disclose a prior relationship with the judge or court commissioner hearing the case?
The committee concluded the Rules of Professional Conduct do not address a lawyer's disclosure of a prior relationship with a judge or court commissioner. The issue is governed by the Code of…
Is there a conflict when a lawyer represents a city whose part-time mayor is an opposing lawyer in the lawyer's other cases?
The committee concluded it depends on whether the relationship adversely affects the lawyer's ability to represent both the city and the other clients. If it does not, there is no conflict under RPC…
Can a Washington lawyer advertise in a free community 'address book' mailed to households?
The committee concluded the proposed marketing program does not violate RPC 7.2 or 7.3, provided the advertisement is not false or misleading under RPC 7.1, the lawyer complies with RPC 7.2(b) and…
Can a prosecutor bid on a public defender contract that begins after their term ends?
The committee concluded it is impermissible under RPC 1.7 for a prosecuting attorney to bid on a public defender contract, even one to take effect after the prosecutor's term of office has ended. It…
Does a nonrefundable flat fee have to go in the client trust account in Washington?
The committee concluded that an advance fee deposit must be placed in trust, while a retainer paid to secure the lawyer's availability is earned at the time of receipt and is not. A nonrefundable…
Can independent lawyers share office space and support staff under a common lease in Washington?
The committee concluded the arrangement is not prohibited by the Rules of Professional Conduct, but lawyers who share staff must preserve each client's confidences and secrets under RPC 1.6, and all…
Can a lawyer rent office space from a nonlawyer business owned by her spouse?
The committee concluded that the proposed arrangement of renting office space from the lawyer's husband's vocational rehabilitation firm satisfies RPC 1.6, 1.7, and 7.3, provided the lawyer takes…
If someone calls wanting to hire you to sue an existing client, can you take the case or reveal what they told you?
The committee concluded that the lawyer is precluded by RPC 1.6(a) from disclosing the prospective client's paternity allegation, must decline to represent the prospective client in the paternity…
Can a lawyer give a third party a copy of an expert's deposition transcript that contains the client's confidences?
The committee concluded that a lawyer may not, without the client's consent, provide a copy of a deposition transcript to a third party not involved in the matter if the deposition contains the…
Can a part-time city prosecutor also represent private criminal defendants in the same court?
The committee concluded that a part-time city prosecutor who also represents private criminal clients in the same courts has a conflict of interest, directed the inquirer to Formal Opinion 161, and…
Can a lawyer set up a nationwide internet law firm with members in every state under a trade name?
The committee concluded that specific portions of the proposed nationwide Internet law firm are not in compliance with the RPCs, flagging problems with the firm's trade name (RPC 7.5), members in…
Can a lawyer share a contingent fee with another lawyer from a different firm who earlier handled the matter?
The committee concluded that the proposed fee sharing does not appear improper if the portion paid to the other lawyer is proportional to the services that lawyer provided to the estate, the client…
Can a licensed lawyer own stock in a law firm professional services corporation without being an employee or a practicing shareholder?
The committee declined to answer the share-purchase question as a legal one, but stated that there do not appear to be any Rules of Professional Conduct that prohibit a duly licensed lawyer from…
Can a legal-services program cap the hours a volunteer lawyer spends on a pro bono case and let the lawyer withdraw when the hours run out?
The committee concluded that a legal-services program's proposal to assign volunteer attorneys an average number of pro bono hours and to permit withdrawal once those hours are used, before the case…
Can a lawyer charge earned fees to a client's credit card if the client authorized it in the engagement letter?
The committee concluded that a lawyer may charge legal fees and costs to a client's credit card sixty days after billing, where the client authorized the charge in the engagement letter, assuming…
Can a lawyer advertise by posting fliers around a venue?
The committee concluded that because RPC 7.2 authorizes advertising through written communication and a flier is a written communication, posting fliers is authorized, subject to compliance with the…
Can a lawyer put a non-legal certification like 'CFE' (Certified Franchise Executive) on advertising materials?
The committee concluded that using the 'CFE' designation, particularly without clarification, would seem to violate RPC 7.1(a) and 7.4 because it omits the facts necessary to keep the statement from…
If a lawyer claims to represent the opposing party but won't confirm it in writing, can you contact that party directly?
The committee concluded that whether a lawyer must disclose representative capacity is a substantive agency-law question outside its charter, but that the failure to provide information clarifying…
Does a lawyer have to use caller-ID blocking to protect a client's confidentiality when calling from the office?
The committee concluded that the rules do not require any particular use of caller ID or caller blocking, but that where a client wants the fact of representation kept secret, the lawyer must use a…
If a potential adversary leaves a detailed voicemail seeking to hire you to sue your existing client, what are your duties?
The committee concluded that whether a client-lawyer relationship formed with the caller is a legal question it could not answer, but that if no relationship formed the lawyer's duty to the caller…
Can a firm put an 'of counsel' lawyer's name in the firm name if that lawyer was never a partner or member?
The committee concluded that a lawyer may not join his or her name with a firm unless the mutual intention is for the lawyer to serve as a member or partner under RPC 7.5(d), and that because the…
Can a lawyer who prepared a client's power of attorney also represent the attorney-in-fact in a transaction affecting the client?
The committee concluded that the lawyer may not represent the agents if their interests are adverse to the client and the representation would adversely affect the client, unless the client gave an…
Can a law firm convert its contingent-fee security interest in a client's real property into an ownership interest while the judgment is on appeal?
The committee concluded that the transaction may be undertaken without necessarily violating the rules, but the lawyer must comply with RPC 1.8(a) for each transaction and with RPC 1.5(c); RPC…
Can lawyers who share an office and a receptionist each represent different family members injured in the same accident?
The committee concluded that office-sharing lawyers may represent different family members injured in a common accident, provided they disclose to their clients under RPC 1.7(b) any material facts…
Can a lawyer hire a paralegal firm to run a branch law office, pay it from case recoveries, and advertise with the paralegal's photo?
The committee concluded that paying a paralegal a share of recoveries is an improper division of fees under RPC 5.4(a), that depending on the supervision the arrangement could be unauthorized…
Can a lawyer charge a contingent fee to appeal the property-division part of a divorce decree?
The committee concluded that RPC 1.5(d)(1) prohibits a contingent fee for the appeal of the portion of a dissolution decree that challenges the trial court's property settlement award, and that the…
Can a lawyer who sits on a hospital foundation board represent clients in matters involving that hospital?
The committee concluded that under RPC 1.7(b) the lawyer's foundation-board responsibilities may materially limit the representation by making the lawyer less aggressive, so RPC 1.7(b)(2) becomes…
If a letter from opposing counsel contains a secret about another of that lawyer's clients, can you forward it to your own client?
The committee concluded that RPC 1.6 governs the duty to protect client confidences and secrets, that a client's identity is ordinarily not privileged, and that a lawyer who wants to forward…
When a lawyer turns down or refers a case because of a conflict and does no further work, can that lawyer still share in the contingent fee?
The committee concluded that RPC 1.5(e), together with RPC 1.8, does not allow a referring lawyer who has a conflict and will not continue to participate to share in the accepting lawyer's…
If a criminal-defense investigator is married to a county forensic investigator working the same case, can the defense investigator work on it?
The committee concluded that, drawing on RPC 1.8(i) by analogy and reading it with RPC 1.7(b), the supervising lawyer must make reasonable efforts to keep the nonlawyer investigator off any case the…
If a lawyer drafted a client's will, can that lawyer or the lawyer's firm later serve as the estate's personal representative and also act as its attorney?
The committee concluded that the Rules of Professional Conduct do not expressly prohibit a lawyer (or the lawyer's firm) who serves as an estate's personal representative from also acting as…
Can a lawyer who set up nothing for an LLC represent the majority members and the LLC against a minority member?
The committee concluded that because the attorney had not been involved in creating the LLC and had not represented any of the members, RPC 1.7(a) and 1.9 do not prohibit representing the majority…
Must a lawyer who sets up a foreign entity for a client's fund transfer investigate the source of the client's funds?
The committee said it could not determine from the facts whether the duty of competent representation under RPC 1.1 requires the lawyer to inquire into the client's source of funds or potential…
Can a lawyer give the Department of Corrections the names of inmates the lawyer has contacted?
The committee concluded that providing the names of contacted inmates to the Department of Corrections is prohibited by RPC 1.6, absent the express consent of the client or a court order compelling…
Can a lawyer put a clause in a fee agreement making it binding on the client's heirs?
The committee concluded that the proposed language making the fee agreement binding on the client's heirs is contrary to RPC 1.7(b), 1.8(a), and 1.8(j), and noted that a lawyer whose client dies…
How does a lawyer withdraw from representing a client who has acted against the interests of the lawyer's other clients?
The committee said the question is not within its scope because it is not a specific ethics inquiry, but noted in general that RPC 1.15(b)(3), 1.15(b)(4), and 1.15(d) apply to concluding the…
Which trust-account rules must a lawyer licensed in Washington and another state follow when the rules conflict?
The committee concluded that a dual-licensed Washington attorney must adhere to Washington trust-account procedures under RPC 1.14 whenever the Washington license is used to represent a client and…
Can the ethics committee say whether a statute criminalizing advice on asset transfers to qualify for benefits affects a lawyer's duties?
The committee declined to opine, explaining its procedural rules bar it from ruling on questions of law, including the validity, applicability, or constitutionality of the cited statute, and noting…
What should a lawyer do when a divorce client disappears and the case is not finished?
The committee concluded the lawyer may withdraw if she complies with RPC 1.15, should make reasonable efforts to contact the client and notify her of the status under RPC 1.4(a), should retain the…
Can a firm sell its fee judgment against a former client to the opposing party in the litigation the firm handled?
The committee said assigning, for compensation, the firm's judgment against its former client to the defendant in the litigation in which the firm previously represented that client does not meet…
Can two lawyers who are married to each other appear as opposing counsel?
The committee was of the opinion that, depending on the facts of each case, the spouse-lawyers must comply with RPC 1.7(b) and RPC 1.8(i), and that as to any confidences or secrets both must comply…
Can a lawyer charge both an hourly fee and, on top of it, a percentage of any recovery (a hybrid or modified contingent fee)?
The opinion concluded yes, in a case where a contingent fee is allowed, so long as the total fee is reasonable, which usually means a lower hourly rate, a lower contingency percentage, or both;…
Did a judge have to recuse when counsel was a former firm associate or a past judicial election opponent?
On the stated facts, the committee found no required recusal for the former associate's new matters or the former opponent's cases, while distinguishing matters handled by the old firm and…
Can a lawyer take a one-third contingent fee for a conservatorship's insurance claim, with part of the fee paid from money recovered for the care facility, and should the facility also be a client?
Yes; the client is the conservatorship as an entity, the written contingent fee may include a share of the facility's recovery if the client consents, and the facility should not be a client because…
If a lawyer might be a necessary trial witness about fees, is the lawyer barred from pre-trial work, and are the lawyer's associates disqualified from trying the case?
No; MRPC 3.7 reaches only acting as advocate at trial, so the lawyer may handle pre-trial matters, and under 3.7(b) the disqualification is not imputed to associates absent an independent 1.7 or 1.9…
My client, who is now applying for bar admission, stiffed me on our written fee agreement. Can I tell the Committee on Character and Fitness that the client defaulted on the fee?
The panel concluded that a client's failure to pay a lawyer's fee is information relating to the representation and may not be disclosed without the client's consent, so notifying the Committee on…
Could magistrates refer only college student defendants to a diversion program without legal authority?
West Virginia JIC Opinion 1997-33 barred participation in the described program because magistrates lacked legal authority and it gave some defendants a benefit unavailable to others.
Could a magistrate explain juvenile court procedure to a local juvenile crime group?
West Virginia JIC Opinion 1997-32 allowed the magistrate to address a study group about the legal system but said not to participate if the group was an advocacy organization.
Could a part-time family law master represent clients in an adoption case?
West Virginia JIC Opinion 1997-31 found no blanket ban on adoption representation but required attention to actual or potential conflicts before taking the case.
Could a judge’s spouse join a CASA advisory committee when the judge heard all local abuse cases?
West Virginia JIC Opinion 1997-30 advised against the spouse joining CASA’s advisory committee because the affiliation could create an appearance of impropriety.
Could a judge’s fiancée remain the circuit’s official court reporter after the judicial appointment?
West Virginia JIC Opinion 1997-29 concluded that the fiancée could not remain official court reporter if the requester became judge, citing Canon 3C(4) and the supervisory relationship.
May a judge test new courtroom technology on an AOC committee funded by donated equipment?
Yes to committee service and testing. The Commission said the judge should not personally solicit or procure donated hardware, software, or training.
May circuit and district judges serve on a county work release board when the statute makes their positions ex officio?
Yes. The Commission permitted the statutory board roles, while saying the judges should keep individual participant supervision separate from judging.
How these opinions are useful
- Understand the rules: Ethics opinions interpret how the rules of professional conduct apply to real fact patterns.
- Weight varies by state: Most bar opinions are advisory, not binding like court discipline decisions, though formal opinions carry substantial weight. Some states go further: Georgia and Virginia opinions approved by the state supreme court bind lawyers there, New Jersey's bind the ethics committees that decide grievances, Rhode Island and Alabama protect the lawyer who asked for an opinion and followed it, and Utah and North Dakota protect lawyers who rely on one. Each opinion page says how much weight its opinion carries.
- Working guidance: The committee shows lawyers what the rule actually requires day to day (conflicts checks, fee letters, intake screens, withdrawal mechanics).
- Practice research: Cite ethics opinions in fee agreements, engagement letters, conflict waivers, and disqualification motions.