Legal Ethics Opinions
Free state and local bar legal ethics opinions with plain-English summaries, full citations, and source links on every page.
No opinions match these filters
Try a different search term or clear the filters.
May one attorney represent both spouses in a divorce, or switch to representing the wife after representing the husband?
No. The committee concluded that an attorney cannot with propriety represent more than one party in a divorce proceeding, and that having represented the husband and possibly obtained his confidences,…
May a lawyer let a life insurance company run an ad naming him a special representative and touting his legal specialties?
No. The committee concluded the ad flagrantly violates Canon 27 if the lawyer keeps a private practice, and that being paid by the insurer to serve its customers violates Canon 35's bar on a lay agenc…
May a lawyer send Christmas or greeting cards that show 'attorney,' his office address, or images referring to his profession?
No. The committee concluded such cards violate Canon 27's bar on indirect advertising; a lawyer may still send personal Christmas cards to friends and close clients so long as they carry no 'attorney'…
May a lawyer run a classified newspaper ad offering to prepare income tax returns and purchase refund claims?
No. The committee concluded the classified ad was a clear violation of Canon 27; that laymen offer the same service does not matter, because when an attorney performs it the work is the practice of la…
May a lawyer's professional card use the title 'Judge' and describe him as an 'Experienced Receiver'?
No. The committee concluded both are improper under Canon 27; a simple professional card may carry only the lawyer's name, address, telephone, associates or firm, and a plain designation of his profes…
May a lawyer form an association with or for a credit collection agency?
Yes, with conditions. The committee found no objection to a lawyer forming an association for a credit collection agency so long as his law practice is entirely disassociated from the separate busines…
May a lawyer sue over an accident at a hotel that an insurance-company client of his had previously insured?
Yes, with conditions. The committee found no impropriety in an attorney representing a client injured at a hotel after the policy period during which the hotel had been insured by a client of the lawy…
Can a lawyer or his firm be hired to attack the validity of a contract that the lawyer or one of his partners drafted?
As a general rule, no. The committee concluded that a lawyer may not accept employment to attack the validity of an instrument he drew, and that a firm cannot accept any employment one of its partners…
Can an attorney who sits on a city council represent defendants charged with city-ordinance violations in that city's municipal court?
The opinion concluded that it is improper for an attorney who is also a city councilman to appear for defendants prosecuted for city-ordinance violations in the municipal court, because the council co…
Can a municipal judge and the city attorney who appears before that judge share the same suite of law offices for their private practices?
The opinion concluded that it is improper for a municipal judge and a city attorney to engage in private law practice in the same suite of offices, because the arrangement implies the city attorney ca…
Can a lawyer retained by a lending institution to give it a title opinion allow that opinion to be sold to the institution's borrower?
The opinion concluded that a lawyer retained by a lending institution to render a title opinion may not sell, or acquiesce in the sale of, a copy of that opinion to the institution's customer, because…
May a claimant's lawyer write directly to the opposing party after the insurer refuses to settle, telling that party to retain counsel?
Yes. The committee found nothing improper in a claimant's attorney writing to the opposing insured, after the insurer's adjuster refused to settle, to give notice of intent to sue and advise the insur…
May a lawyer let an organization he represents publish his picture and biography in the organization's promotional pamphlet to the public?
The committee concluded it was improper for an attorney for an organization to permit his picture and biography to appear in the organization's advertisement to the general public, because it amounted…
Can a lawyer who serves as special counsel to a city's personnel board appear before the city council or sue the city for private clients in unrelated matters?
No. The committee concluded that special counsel to a city personnel board could not appear before the city council or sue the city for private clients, even on matters unrelated to personnel, because…
Must a lawyer keep a client's confidence when the client threatens a crime, and may he pay a forwarding fee to the lawyer who referred the case?
The duty to preserve a client's confidences outlasts the engagement, but the committee said the Canons both permit and require a lawyer to disclose a client's announced intention to commit a crime; wh…
When a guardian tells her lawyer she has misused her ward's funds, may the lawyer prepare an account that hides the misuse, or report the misuse to the court without her consent?
The committee concluded the lawyer may not prepare or file an account that conceals the misappropriation, is not obligated to report the misuse to the court absent the guardian's consent, and may not …
Can a law firm own stock in a loan company that lends to its clients with pending claims and keep referring clients there?
The Committee concluded that a firm may invest in the stock of a loan company that lends to persons with pending damage-suit claims, and may continue referring clients who need to borrow to that compa…
May a Texas district judge publish a printed Christmas greeting in a local newspaper, and would the same be improper for a practicing lawyer?
The Committee concluded that district judges may publish printed Christmas greetings in their local newspapers, because a public official's recognized need to advertise permits it so long as it is not…
Can a lawyer entering private practice note on his announcement cards that he was a former Assistant United States Attorney?
The Committee concluded that a former Assistant United States Attorney may not include his former official position on a professional announcement card announcing his entry into private practice, beca…
If a lawyer accepts a case and only later turns out to be a material witness on a disputed fact, may his firm still try the case?
The Committee concluded that where a lawyer accepts employment with no knowledge that he will be a material witness, and a dispute arises before trial about facts on which he may have to testify, it i…
May a Texas district judge sign pleadings or act as counsel in a case, or solicit and refer business to the lawyer who took over his practice?
The Committee concluded that a district judge may not properly sign pleadings or act as counsel in a district court case (Article 319 bars a district judge from pleading as an attorney, and doing so v…
Is it improper under the Texas Canons for an individual lawyer to host a party, such as a fish fry, honoring a judge?
The Committee concluded that whether an individual lawyer may properly give a party honoring a judge is an open question that turns entirely on the lawyer's intent and the circumstances of his relatio…
Can a new bar group set up a members-only lawyer referral service and run radio ads touting a low consultation fee that undercuts an existing service?
The Committee concluded that a group of lawyers may organize a bar association, but it is improper to run that association's referral service for members only where an existing referral plan already o…
Can a lawyer testify about what a client told him in confidence when the client was planning, and then committed, a crime?
The Committee concluded that when a client reveals an intention to commit a crime and then commits it, the lawyer is not bound to respect the client's confidences and may testify to those facts, becau…
Can a lawyer give the opposing party a copy of a contract he drafted for his client, without the client's consent?
The Committee concluded that the Texas Canons neither prohibit nor compel a lawyer from furnishing the opposing lawyer a copy of a partnership contract he drafted for client X, without X's consent, be…
Can a lawyer handling an insurer's subrogation claim tell the insured his injury claim may be barred and offer to handle that claim too?
The Committee concluded that a lawyer handling an insurer's subrogation claim may give the insured notice that the litigation could affect the insured's personal-injury rights, but may not suggest or …
Can a plaintiff's lawyer write the unrepresented opposing party to explain the claim, his duty to his insurer, and the risk of an excess verdict?
The Committee concluded that a lawyer for an injured party may notify an unrepresented opposing party of a claim and suggest he seek counsel, but may not advise the tort-feasor as to the law and his s…
Can a lawyer list his out-of-state office in the yellow pages of a city where he has no office, under a heading like 'Patent Attorneys'?
The Committee concluded that a Texas lawyer may not list his name, Texas office address, and telephone number in the classified section of an Oklahoma City telephone directory, where he has no office,…
Can a lawyer mail an office-move announcement card touting 'new and enlarged quarters' and his memberships in courts and civic organizations?
The Committee concluded that an attorney may not send an announcement card describing his removal to 'new and enlarged quarters' and listing memberships in specified court bars and civic organizations…
Can a lawyer list his memberships in the American, state, and local bar associations on his letterhead?
The Committee concluded that an attorney may not indicate on his stationery that he is a member of the American, state, and local bar associations; such a statement is self-laudation rather than clien…
Can a lawyer sit as a city commissioner while his law partner represents clients with matters before that same commission?
The Committee concluded that one member of a law firm may not serve as chairman of the City Commission while his law partner accepts employment to represent clients with interests before the Commissio…
Can a lawyer who owns an abstract company route title work between the company and his law practice, post his law sign under the company's sign, and let his name run in the company's newspaper ads?
The Committee concluded that 'feeding' law business between an attorney and an abstract company he owns or manages violates Canons 24 and 25; that his professional sign placed below the company's larg…
Can two lawyers stay law partners when one of them is the County Judge and the other is the County Attorney of the same county?
The Committee concluded that it is generally improper for two lawyers to continue as partners when one is the County Attorney and the other the County Judge of the same county; because the judge's nam…
May a lawyer who also serves as a county commissioner try cases before circuit judges whose budget and salary the county commission controls?
Yes. The committee found no impropriety in a lawyer who was also a county commissioner trying cases before circuit judges, even though the county commission controlled the court's space, budget, and s…
May a newly admitted lawyer cooperate with an unsolicited newspaper feature story about his night-law-school education?
Yes, within limits. The committee concluded the lawyer may cooperate, preferably anonymously, if he insists the article be dignified, not advertising, and not an appeal for sympathy, and reviews it be…
May a lawyer list himself in the telephone directory of a town where he has neither an office nor a residence?
No. The committee concluded such a listing violates Canon 27 as advertising, because the only reason to appear in a directory where the lawyer neither lives nor practices is to advertise, not to be lo…
After the phone company left a lawyer's name out of the yellow pages, may it mail every subscriber a card correcting the omission?
No. The committee concluded that mailing correction cards to all subscribers would violate Canon 27 as indirect advertising; a correction may only go to other bar members and the lawyers' clients whos…
When a firm member is the city attorney, may the firm represent private clients before the city council, its boards, or the municipal court?
No. The committee concluded such representation violates Canon 6's bar on conflicting interests; because the city attorney himself could not appear, neither can his partners, since one partner's canon…
May a part-time assistant county attorney privately represent a beer-license applicant in a hearing his own office has a duty to contest?
No. The committee concluded the representation would violate Canon 6's bar on representing conflicting interests; full-time assistants cannot practice privately at all, and even a statutorily permitte…
May a lawyer run a separate 'skip tracer' business locating missing persons for other lawyers without violating the canons?
Yes, but only narrowly. The committee concluded the lawyer was on dangerous ground; the side business is permissible if run from a separate office, conducted so as not to reveal his bar membership, an…
May a law firm list itself in the telephone directory under the heading 'Adjuster' without noting that its members are lawyers?
No. The committee concluded the listing violated Canon 27, because claims adjusting is so closely tied to the practice of law that an attorney doing it would inevitably be practicing law, and such spe…
May a lawyer run newspaper ads offering 'Income Tax Service' if the ads omit that he is an attorney?
No. The committee concluded that the ads flagrantly violated Canon 27, and that leaving out the lawyer's profession was a mere subterfuge to evade the canons; a lawyer performing tax work that is gene…
Can a lawyer who sits on a charity's board disclose a client's undisclosed savings to prevent the client from continuing to receive aid he may not qualify for?
The committee concluded that a lawyer should not voluntarily disclose a client's confidences to prevent a crime unless the intended act is so serious that prevention outweighs the duty of secrecy, and…
Can a Colorado lawyer who only rents office space to other lawyers list them as part of his firm or as associated with him?
The opinion concluded that a lawyer who merely rents space to other lawyers may not represent, by letterhead, phone listing, or otherwise, that they are associated with him or part of his firm, becaus…
Can Colorado lawyers who only share office space and expenses list each other as "associates" on their letterheads?
The opinion concluded that lawyers whose only real relationship is sharing office space and expenses may not list each other as "associates" on their letterheads, because that implies a partnership or…
Can a county attorney or prosecutor take private condemnation cases against the county, or private civil work arising from accidents he might prosecute?
No to private condemnation work where the county has a financial interest, and a prosecutor may not accept private civil employment from an accident if it might influence his judgment in the criminal …
Can a lawyer suing or negotiating against a city deal directly with the City Council or City Manager instead of the city attorney?
The Committee divided equally (4-4) on whether a lawyer violates Canon 9 by negotiating directly with a City Council or City Manager rather than with the attorney representing the city, so it reached …
Can a lawyer who sits on a state commission defend a former client in a suit brought by the state, where the commission has no role in the matter?
The Committee unanimously concluded that a lawyer who is a member of the Texas State Highway Commission may defend his former client in a state suit for conspiracy to violate the Motor Carrier Act, be…
Can a lawyer take a guaranteed annual retainer from one client, work from that client's offices at the client's expense, and offset fees earned from other clients against the retainer?
The Committee concluded that a lawyer may accept a guaranteed annual retainer from a client, with the client furnishing office space and overhead, reduced by the net fees the lawyer earns from other c…
Can a Texas lawyer lend or advance money to a client, or guarantee the client's credit, when repayment depends on the outcome of the client's claim?
The Committee concluded that in Texas advancing or lending money to a client can be condemned only where it amounts to solicitation: it is improper before employment to obtain a case, and improper aft…
Can a defense lawyer send a represented plaintiff a copy of a letter to the plaintiff's attorney demanding a physical examination, even long after suit is filed?
The Committee concluded that defense attorneys may properly send plaintiffs copies of letters to plaintiffs' counsel requesting a physical examination by the defendant's physician, even well after sui…
Can a bank require borrowers to use the bank's attorney for loan papers, can one lawyer represent both buyer and seller, and can the buyer's lawyer offer to prepare the seller's deed?
The Committee concluded that a bank may require its own attorney to prepare the mortgage and note (with the borrower's own counsel preparing other papers), that one lawyer may represent both buyer and…
Can a Texas lawyer form a partnership with a District of Columbia lawyer under a joint firm name if the letterhead shows the out-of-state partner is in the Washington office?
The Committee concluded that a Texas lawyer may form a partnership with a lawyer admitted only in the District of Columbia under a firm name using both partners' names, provided the letterhead shows t…
Can a county attorney interview an arrested person in jail to decide whether to prosecute and to testify at trial, when someone else in the office tries the case?
The Committee concluded that a county attorney or assistant may see and talk with a jailed accused shortly after arrest in order to later testify, provided the accused has no attorney at the time, and…
Can a retired lawyer volunteer to defend indigent criminal defendants for free without violating the rules against solicitation?
The Committee concluded that a lawyer may properly volunteer free legal advice and assistance to the indigent and needy, so long as it is not done with the improper motive of self-advertisement, and f…
Can a lawyer buy a professional-card advertisement in the business directory of a charity event program, such as a Shrine Circus program?
The Committee concluded that a lawyer may not publish his professional card in the business and professional directory of a Shrine Circus program, because a professional card may be published only in …
Can Texas lawyers who have formed a new association run a newspaper notice announcing the association and one partner's change of office address?
The Committee concluded that lawyers may not cause a newspaper notice to be published announcing the formation of their new association or one lawyer's change of office address, because such a public …
Can a Texas lawyer send other local lawyers an office-opening announcement card stating 'General Civil Practice - Collections'?
The Committee concluded that a lawyer may not send other members of the local bar an office-opening announcement card stating he will engage in 'General Civil Practice - Collections,' because the 'col…
How may a Texas lawyer announce an office move, name his office building, and sign published notices to estate creditors without improper advertising?
The Committee concluded that a lawyer may mail a simple office-move announcement (with a phone number) to regular clients but may not publish it in a newspaper, mail it to non-clients absent personal …
May a Texas County Judge practice law in the County Court-at-Law, and can he keep handling probate matters pending in his own county court?
The Committee found that a County Judge's private practice before other courts is governed by statute (Art. 319, Civil Statutes; Arts. 402 and 403, Penal Code), not by any Canon, so it declined to res…
How these opinions are useful
- Understand the rules: Ethics opinions interpret how the rules of professional conduct apply to real fact patterns.
- Persuasive authority: Not binding like court discipline decisions, but state bar formal opinions carry substantial weight.
- 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.