Legal Ethics Opinions
Free state and local bar legal ethics opinions with plain-English summaries, full citations, and source links on every page.
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Can a firm buy the law practice of a part-time municipal judge becoming full-time, and must the firm disclose that deal to opposing counsel?
The committee concluded the firm could enter the arrangement to buy the practice, that RPC 8.4(d) required disclosing it to opposing counsel where non-disclosure would be prejudicial, and that…
What must a lawyer do with a deceased lawyer's files that contain original wills and deeds when the clients cannot be located?
The committee concluded that the lawyer had to continue safeguarding original wills, deeds, and other client property when the clients could not be located, but that file materials that are not…
Does the lawyer-as-witness rule stop a lawyer from representing himself, or from being represented by another lawyer in the same firm?
The committee concluded that RPC 3.7 is not intended to prevent a lawyer from representing himself or herself in litigation, nor to prevent a lawyer from being represented by another lawyer in the…
Can a lawyer release a former client's information to the news media because the lawyer believes the former client may commit future crimes?
The committee concluded that RPC 1.6(b)(1) permits disclosure to prevent a client crime only on an objectively reasonable belief, not a subjective one, and that without specific objective facts the…
May a lawyer pay an expert witness a contingent fee?
The committee said RPC 3.4(b) governs, barring inducements to a witness that are prohibited by law, but whether a contingent fee is prohibited by law is a legal question the committee could not answer.
Does a lawyer have to tell the opposing party that the lawyer is married to the client's treating chiropractor?
The committee concluded that nothing in the rules required the lawyer to disclose the marital relationship between the lawyer and the client's chiropractor to an opposing party, unless the lawyer…
Can a law firm represent a client in litigation when the firm already owns a small ownership stake in that client?
The opinion concluded that Rule 3.7(c)'s bar on acquiring a proprietary interest in litigation does not reach a firm whose pre-existing interest in the client was acquired for reasons independent of…
Must a judge recuse in a custody case involving a secretary’s distant relative or a former litigation adversary?
Opinion 88-349 found no disqualification from the secretary’s distant family connection alone, but said Canon 3C required disqualification in the former-adversary situation presented.
Where may a part-time municipal judge practice law, and may the judge handle cases involving municipal police or ordinances?
The Commission barred practice before the judge’s own court and representation involving an ordinance within that court’s jurisdiction. It permitted unrelated criminal defense work in other courts…
Must a judge recuse from every case involving the Department of Human Resources because the judge’s spouse works there?
No. The Commission required recusal when the spouse was personally involved, likely to be a material witness, or likely to receive a known direct or indirect benefit; agency employment alone did not…
May a part-time municipal judge defend a criminal case involving the municipality’s police in another court?
The Commission reaffirmed that a part-time municipal judge may defend criminal cases in other courts even when municipal officers testify, unless the matter or a closely related one has come or is…
Must a judge recuse from all criminal cases because the judge’s brother is an assistant district attorney?
No. The Commission said the brother’s employment alone did not disqualify the judge from every criminal case, but recusal was required when the brother directly participated or appeared for the…
Does Canon 3B(4) bar a probation officer from hiring a judge’s sister-in-law when the judge supervises the office?
The Commission found no Canon 3B(4) violation because the chief probation officer, rather than the judge, had appointing authority.
Can a criminal defense lawyer file a broad 'blanket' motion to suppress, and must the lawyer investigate every ground first?
The Board concluded that filing a 'blanket' motion to suppress does not violate the Code, and that a criminal defense lawyer is not required to conduct a complete investigation before filing one…
Can a lawyer hold a client's file or work product until the legal fee is paid?
The committee concluded that whether 'applicable law' lets an attorney retain a client's papers or work product is a legal question outside its purview, but that even where the law permits…
Can a full-time probate or juvenile court referee draft wills or trusts for relatives?
The Board concluded that a full-time referee is a judge for purposes of the Code of Judicial Conduct and is precluded from practicing law under Canon 5F, and that preparing wills is the practice of…
Is an Ohio attorney who is delinquent on biennial registration, but not yet stricken from the roll, engaged in the unauthorized practice of law while still practicing?
The Board concluded that an attorney who is delinquent in biennial registration but has not yet been stricken from the roll of registered attorneys is not engaged in the unauthorized practice of law…
Can a retired judge who is not eligible for recall to the bench endorse candidates and take part in political campaigns?
The Board concluded that a retired judge who is not eligible for recall to judicial service is not governed by the Code of Judicial Conduct and therefore may endorse or participate in the campaign…
At a real estate closing, can the buyer's lawyer discuss the sale with the seller before the seller's lawyer arrives?
The Board concluded that former DR 7-104(A)(1) bars communicating with a represented party on the subject of the representation, but that communications truly unrelated to the representation are not…
If a lawyer is discharged before doing any work, can the lawyer still enforce a retainer agreement and collect the stipulated fee?
The Board concluded that when a lawyer withdraws or is discharged, has collected no fees, and has performed no services, the lawyer is not entitled to the stipulated fee, because a lawyer must…
Can a lawyer follow instructions from a client's real estate agent to prepare a different deed than the contract calls for, and how much decision authority belongs to the client?
The Board concluded that decision-making authority over the representation rests exclusively with the client, that a lawyer should keep the client informed and discuss the deed options directly with…
Can an attorney advertise on a billboard in Ohio?
The Board concluded that billboard advertising is a permitted form of advertising under former DR 2-101, relying on the rule's 'or otherwise' catchall, provided the billboard contains no false,…
Can a lawyer advertise for cases, like personal injury, that the lawyer does not actually handle but refers out to other firms?
The Board concluded that it is misleading under former DR 2-101(A) for a lawyer to advertise for work the lawyer does not handle, such as advertising for personal injury clients while referring…
Can a lawyer pay to be listed in a 'Talking Yellow Pages' service that gives callers attorney names by random computer selection?
The Board concluded that a lawyer could advertise in the Talking Yellow Pages, because under DR 2-101(B)'s catchall it was a permitted form of advertising and, since the service did not recommend or…
When can a lawyer share a fee with another lawyer outside the firm, and does advancing litigation costs or appearing as co-counsel count as 'responsibility assumed'?
The Board concluded that under former DR 2-107(A)(2), a division of fees between lawyers outside the same firm must be proportional to the services performed and responsibility assumed, and that…
Can a prosecutor publicly explain why a criminal charge was not filed once the investigation is finished?
The Board concluded that former DR 7-107(A) barred extrajudicial statements about a pending criminal investigation, but did not apply to completed investigations, so a prosecutor could explain why a…
Must a Tennessee criminal defense lawyer investigate the facts before filing a motion to suppress evidence?
The Board held that civil Rule 11 does not apply to criminal proceedings and declined to decide whether an equivalent threshold should apply. It treated the investigation standards it quoted as…
Must a Tennessee prosecutor notify a delinquent child-support obligor's attorney of record before filing a petition for contempt and attachment against the obligor?
The opinion concluded that filing a petition for contempt and attachment against a delinquent child support obligor under T.C.A. Section 36-5-101(b) is an appearance under DR 7-106(C)(5), so the…
When the same insurer covers both the plaintiff and the defendant, can the defense lawyer use the plaintiff's insurance file that the carrier forwards to use against the plaintiff?
The opinion concluded that defense counsel hired by the carrier may not use the plaintiff's insurance file obtained from the carrier to circumvent the rules of discovery, because doing so is unfair…
May a lawyer collect for another firm and later handle a case against a lawyer from that firm?
The committee declined blanket approval or disapproval. It said Rule 1.7 governed each situation, discussed written consent from the firm and client consent after full consultation if a conflict…
Can a Mississippi lawyer who holds a contingent fee join with the client as a named party plaintiff in the lawsuit?
The opinion concluded a lawyer whose only interest is a contingent fee should not join as a named party plaintiff with the client, even though acquiring the contingent fee and securing it by…
Can a Mississippi lawyer mail a newsletter to clients and the public and hold educational legal seminars without violating the advertising rules?
The opinion concluded a lawyer may distribute a newsletter to clients, potential clients, and the public, and may hold or join educational seminars, provided the material is not false or misleading…
Can a lawyer who is county counsel and a school board attorney appear before municipal boards where his father is a township committeeman?
The Committee concluded the attorney is not prohibited from appearing before municipal agencies (other than the Board of Education he represents) merely because he is county counsel, is school board…
Can a lawyer send a statutory demand notice directly to an unrepresented opposing party?
Yes, with disclaimers. Georgia FAO 88-3 concluded that a lawyer may send the O.C.G.A. 51-12-14 demand notice to an unrepresented party if the notice states it is sent only to establish a claim for…
If a lawyer testified at trial on the client's behalf, can the same lawyer brief and argue the appeal?
The opinion concluded that a lawyer who testified at trial is precluded from acting as appellate counsel if the lawyer knows or it is obvious that the subject of the testimony will or ought to be an…
Can a lawyer who is owed fees by a former client now in bankruptcy use what the lawyer learned about the client's affairs to help the trustee or creditors locate assets, while also pursuing the lawyer's own fee claim?
The committee concluded that former counsel may file a fee claim in the bankruptcy and an adversary proceeding to have the debt declared nondischargeable, using confidences only as necessary and…
Can a lawyer let a non-law business she co-owns list 'Esq.' after her name on the company letterhead and promotional materials?
The opinion concluded that listing 'Esq.' after the lawyer-shareholder's name on a non-law business corporation's letterhead does not violate the advertising rule, because the designation is…
Can a lawyer accept a forwarding (referral) fee on a case he had to forward to other counsel because of a conflict of interest?
The committee concluded it would be improper to accept a forwarding fee on a case forwarded because of a conflict, because the forwarding lawyer cannot expressly assume responsibility to the client…
May a judge serve as a Veterans of Foreign Wars post commander or district advocate?
The Committee permits post commander service if the judge does not solicit funds or use office prestige for fundraising. District advocate service is impermissible if its duties include legal advice…
Can an in-house lawyer collect statutory attorney's fees that go to the lawyer's employer?
Yes. Georgia FAO 88-2 concluded that an attorney-employee may collect statutory attorney's fees on a defaulted note that accrue to the employer, because the employer is the client and the fees are…
Can the law partner of a municipal planning board's counsel serve as counsel to the municipal utilities authority in the same township?
The Committee applied its settled test that an attorney, or a partner of an attorney, cannot serve as counsel to two boards of the same municipality where there is or may be a conflict, rejected the…
Can a lawyer become a school board's attorney right after the lawyer's partner finishes a term as a member of that board?
The Committee concluded that both the former board member and his law partner should not serve as the board's attorney for six months following the member's service, regardless of how the…
Can a lawyer take a contingent fee to collect unpaid alimony arrears after a divorce judgment?
The Committee concluded that RPC 1.5(d)(1) does not bar a contingent fee for recovering post-judgment alimony arrears, because the action seeks to collect already-determined alimony rather than the…
Can a law firm form and invest in a for-profit subsidiary that provides non-legal services to the firm's clients?
The committee concluded the general concept of a firm owning a non-legal services subsidiary did not violate the Canons, but flagged that the arrangement raised concerns under the rules on…
Can a law firm form and co-own a title abstract company with one of its real estate clients, and then refer its clients to that company for title work?
The opinion concluded that a firm may form and be a principal in a title abstract company with a client subject to solicitation, fee-sharing, and business-transaction safeguards, and may refer…
Can administrative law judges serve as arbitrators in outside proceedings, given that the Code of Judicial Conduct bars full-time judges from acting as arbitrators?
The opinion concluded that the Code of Judicial Conduct's flat bar on judges acting as arbitrators should not be applied rigidly to administrative law judges; ALJs may serve as arbitrators where it…
In a 42 U.S.C. 1983/1988 civil rights case, can a lawyer use a contingent fee, and is the lawyer's fee capped at the court-awarded statutory fee?
Yes to a contingent fee. The opinion concluded that, as a matter of legal ethics, the total fee is not necessarily limited to the court-awarded amount, but the lawyer cannot collect both the…
When a law firm dissolves, what duties do the principals owe to clients and to each other?
The opinion concluded that dissolving lawyers must continue serving clients until matters conclude or withdrawal is permitted, notify clients in a way that preserves their free choice of counsel,…
Can a lawyer skip the trust account for a small recording fee by depositing the client's single check for the fee and recording cost into the general account?
The opinion concluded that all funds received as a fiduciary must go into the trust account no matter how small, but a lawyer may avoid an intermediate trust deposit by advancing the recording cost…
Can a lawyer who is trustee in a foreclosure file a motion in the debtor's bankruptcy to lift the automatic stay?
The opinion concluded that a foreclosure trustee owes a fiduciary duty to both borrower and lender and may not act as an advocate for either; because moving to lift the bankruptcy stay puts the…
Must a judge recuse from a divorce proceeding when a party sits on a housing authority that pays rent to the judge’s company?
Yes. The Commission found that the beneficial financial relationship between the authority and the judge’s wholly owned company could reasonably call impartiality into question.
Must a judge recuse when a city is a party and the judge’s brother-in-law serves on its council?
Yes. The Commission treated the council member as an officer of the city and required disqualification whenever the city was a party, whether the case was civil or criminal.
May a part-time municipal judge continue serving while the judge’s father represents the city in a separate case?
On the stated facts, the Commission found no violation of the Alabama Canons where the father’s fee and the judge’s salary did not become assets of their law firm.
Must a municipal judge recuse from charges against individuals after a police raid on a country club in which the judge owns shares?
Yes. The Commission said the outcome of the individual cases could substantially affect the judge’s interest in the club, even though no charges had yet been filed against the club itself.
Can a lawyer take a contingent fee to collect child-support arrearages from a deceased parent's estate?
The committee concluded that because the noncustodial parent was deceased, two of the four conditions for a contingent fee in a support case (the child's age and not undermining the parent-child…
Can a lawyer secure a fee with a lien on the very property in dispute, or take a contingent fee as an assigned interest in that property?
The opinion concluded both are permissible under DR 5-103(A), which lets a lawyer acquire a lien to secure fees and contract for a reasonable contingent fee in a civil case, subject to the bar on…
Can a sitting judge write a letter to the newspaper supporting another judge's retention if the letter does not say the writer is a judge?
The opinion concluded such a letter would violate Canon 7(A) of the Code of Judicial Conduct, which bars a judge from publicly endorsing a candidate for public office, even though the letter would…
When winding up a deceased lawyer's practice, what should be done with trust-account money that can't be matched to a client or whose client can't be found?
The opinion concluded that, after a reasonable good-faith effort (including newspaper publication) to identify and locate the owners, funds that cannot be attributed to any client may be paid to the…
What did Missouri Formal Opinion 118 require for unused trust funds when a former client could not be located?
The lawyer's safekeeping duty continued. Under the law cited in 1988, funds and interest became abandoned after seven years and had to be reported and paid to the state, less reasonable compliance costs.
I want to broker medical experts and consultants to other attorneys for malpractice and personal injury cases, earning a contingent fee for the brokering (not for legal services). Can I do that, and can I market it using letterhead that shows I'm also a lawyer?
The brokerage itself is permissible as a commercial rather than legal activity, but the panel held the attorney may not use stationery, signage, or publications that identify him as a lawyer in…
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.