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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If a lawyer in a civil case learns the client gave false testimony, does the duty of candor to the tribunal require disclosing it?
The opinion concludes that Rule 3.3(d) does not override Rule 1.6(d). Disclosure to the tribunal is required only when the lawyer has actual knowledge of the fraud, the client used the lawyer's…
Do judicial ethics rules apply to how a judge hires staff, makes appointments, and supervises chambers, or only to deciding cases?
They apply to administration too. The opinion concludes that the Model Code of Judicial Conduct's duties of impartiality and integrity (Canons 1 and 2 and Rules 1.2, 1.3, 2.3, 2.4, 2.12, and 2.13)…
What conflicts of interest does a New York per diem (appearance counsel) attorney face when switching between representing plaintiff lenders and defendant debtors in collection matters?
The opinion concludes that a per diem lawyer may not oppose a current client in any matter, or a former client in a substantially related matter, without informed consent confirmed in writing;…
May a New York disability-rights lawyer who relies on fee-shifting awards enter agreements with compensatory-service providers under which the providers pay a portion of the lawyer's fees, and refer clients to those providers?
Per the Committee, yes if the client gives informed consent under Rule 1.8(f) and informed consent confirmed in writing under Rule 1.7(b) for the Rule 1.7(a)(2) personal-interest conflict, provided…
May a Colorado veterans treatment court judge attend staffing meetings after the district attorney withdraws?
Yes. The Board allowed the judge to attend despite the district attorney's voluntary absence, with or without a public defender representative, because the office had notice and the court was…
May a New York lawyer hold a financial interest in, divide fees with, or manage an Arizona-licensed alternative business structure (ABS) with nonlawyer owners?
The Committee concludes a New York lawyer may hold a passive financial interest in an out-of-state ABS that lawfully practices in its home jurisdiction. The lawyer may divide fees with the ABS under…
May a Texas school's lawyer speak directly with parents at an ARD special-education meeting when the parents are represented by a lawyer but bring only a nonlawyer advocate to the meeting?
The opinion concludes the school's lawyer may not. Rule 4.02(a) prohibits the school's lawyer from communicating, or causing or encouraging another to communicate, with the parents about the subject…
Can a Texas lawyer hire an unaffiliated 'appearance lawyer' to cover a single hearing or deposition, and what duties does each lawyer take on?
The opinion concludes that a Texas lawyer may hire an appearance lawyer for a discrete task, but the appearance lawyer represents the client (not the hiring lawyer) and owes the full duties of…
What must an Illinois lawyer do when they learn that the lawyer who hired them on a matter has been removed from the Master Roll of Attorneys for MCLE noncompliance?
The opinion concludes the lawyer must first notify the hiring lawyer and may not continue working with the hiring lawyer unless reinstatement occurs; if the hiring lawyer is not reinstated, the…
Can an Oregon lawyer use a chatbot or AI agent for client intake and marketing on their website?
Yes, with conditions. The opinion concludes Oregon lawyers may use chatbots and AI agents for intake and marketing if they stay competent in the tool, supervise it, disclaim it is not a lawyer,…
If an Oregon lawyer gets an advance conflict waiver from a prospective client, can the lawyer or firm later represent the opposing party?
Yes, qualified. The opinion concludes the lawyer and firm may represent the opposing party if no disqualifying information was received, or if it was, only where RPC 1.18(d)'s conditions (mutual…
Must a judicial law clerk resign to run for a nonjudicial elected office?
The Commission held that law clerks who work closely with judges must resign when they become candidates for nonjudicial office, at the earliest of announcing, filing election papers, or forming a…
May a Korean law firm, as an entity, be a partner or member of a New York limited liability partnership that includes New York-licensed attorneys?
Per the Committee, whether New York LLP substantive law permits a foreign law firm to be a member is a question of law beyond the Committee. If state law permits it, and if the Korean lawyers'…
After a representation ends, must a lawyer answer a former client's or new counsel's questions about things that were never written down in the file?
Sometimes. The opinion concludes Rule 1.16(d) requires a former lawyer to convey unrecorded information acquired during the representation when it is necessary to protect the client's interests in…
Must a Vermont assistant judge report for jury duty, and may the judge serve after hearing related abuse cases?
Vermont Judicial Ethics Opinion 37 says judges have no automatic jury-service exemption. The assistant judge cannot sit as a juror in cases involving facts or defendants from relief-from-abuse…
A former client asked me to destroy all the emails and records they sent me during the representation. Do the ethics rules require me to destroy those files?
No. The panel held that Rule 1.16(d) does not require an attorney to destroy a former client's files on request; the client file is the client's property and the client-provided materials should…
Can a Maine lawyer limit representation to a single task like drafting a complaint, and what does Rule 1.2(c) require?
Yes. A Maine lawyer may limit the scope of representation if the limitation is reasonable under the circumstances and the client gives informed consent after consultation. A written agreement is the…
In D.C., can a lawyer treat a prepaid flat fee or subscription fee as earned on receipt and deposit it in the operating account?
The opinion concludes that prepaid flat fees and subscription fees are advances of unearned fees that must be held in trust until earned, and cannot be made earned-on-receipt by contract language…
May a South Carolina lawyer choose an eligible IOLTA bank because a vendor offers a practice-management software credit based on the trust-account balance?
Yes. The opinion permits the arrangement if the bank remains eligible, all IOLTA interest is remitted, client funds stay secure and available, and the incentive does not affect professional judgment…
Can a South Carolina lawyer supervise a HELOC closing (recordation and disbursement) without performing a title search when the lender's product requires no title work?
Yes. Because the lender's HELOC product includes no title search or title insurance, there is no title-examination step to constitute the practice of law, so the lawyer may supervise the closing,…
Does a Washington lawyer assist UPL just by knowing the opposing party is represented by someone not authorized to practice law?
No. Merely knowing that an adverse party's representative is engaged in UPL in a non-litigation matter does not by itself violate RPC 5.5(a) or 8.4(a); assisting requires affirmative help. But the…
What must a Washington lawyer do when a client has limited English or another communication barrier?
The lawyer must make reasonable use of a qualified interpreter or translator to communicate effectively, protect client confidences when doing so, and obtain informed consent before using AI or…
What must a California lawyer do when charging a flat fee, refunding an advance flat fee after early termination, or renegotiating a flat fee mid-engagement?
The opinion concludes a California lawyer must clearly state which services the flat fee covers and when it is earned, must refund any unearned portion of an advance flat fee on early termination…
May an Oregon lawyer split a fee with an out-of-state firm that has a nonlawyer owner and offers legal services in Oregon?
No, on the stated facts. The opinion concludes that an Oregon lawyer may not split a fee with a nonlawyer-owned alternative business structure that directly offers legal services in Oregon.
Can a Pennsylvania lawyer ask about or threaten to report a witness's or party's immigration status?
It depends on purpose. The opinion concludes that referencing, inquiring into, or reporting a person's immigration status to keep that person from participating in the legal system violates…
When can a Pennsylvania lawyer be listed as "of counsel" to a law firm?
Only when there is a close, continuing, personal professional relationship between the lawyer and the firm. The opinion concludes the label must not be false or misleading, and an of-counsel lawyer…
May an elected Mississippi chancery judge say re-elect after judicial district boundaries change?
Mississippi Judicial Election Oversight Committee Public Opinion 2026-01 says an elected chancellor may use re-elect when running in the same numbered judicial district after a boundary change and…
What are an Alabama lawyer's ethical duties when using AI tools like ChatGPT in legal practice?
AI creates no new ethical duties but recontextualizes existing ones. An Alabama lawyer must independently verify AI output, safeguard client data, supervise AI as a nonlawyer assistant, bill only…
May a Utah problem-solving court require treatment with one provider without a rotating provider list?
Utah Judicial Ethics Informal Opinion 25-1 permits a judge to require a participant to complete a treatment plan developed by others, even with one provider, when the plan uses reasonable, unbiased…
May a New York attorney's nonlegal entity (here, one providing tax filings) share a percentage of revenue with a nonlawyer technology developer, and pay referral fees to other attorneys who refer clients to the entity?
Per the opinion, yes if the entity avoids being treated as a law firm under Rule 5.7. The attorney owners must give the Rule 5.7(a)(4) written disclaimer and otherwise avoid any reasonable client…
What does a New York lawyer have to do when AI tools (whether the lawyer's or the client's) record, transcribe, and summarize attorney-client conversations on Zoom, Teams, or similar platforms?
The opinion concludes the lawyer must obtain client consent before AI records the call, must independently review any AI-generated transcript or summary for accuracy, must safeguard confidentiality…
May a New York attorney's irrevocable testamentary trust own his shares of a law-firm professional corporation after his death, when both the trustee and the sole beneficiary are New York-licensed lawyers and the trust prohibits any benefit to nonlawyers?
The Committee concludes no. A trust is a nonlawyer and is not an entity authorized to practice law, so its permanent ownership of P.C. shares would violate Rule 5.4(a), (b), and (d). Rule…
When is an Indiana flat-fee agreement reasonable, earned, and refundable?
A flat fee can be treated as earned on receipt for trust-account purposes, but its scope and amount must be reasonable and clear, and the unearned portion must be refunded if the agreed services are…
My firm's intake staff interviewed a prospective client (a nurse) whose problem turns out to be the same death my existing clients are suing over. Does that intake create a conflict forcing me to withdraw from the family's case?
The panel concluded the intake interview does create a conflict requiring the attorney to withdraw from representing the Decedent's family. The nurse is a prospective client under Rule 1.18, and…
How much can a lawyer tell the judge about the client when filing a motion to withdraw from the case?
Very little without the client's consent. The opinion concludes that Rule 1.6 confidentiality limits what a lawyer may disclose in a withdrawal motion, even when withdrawal is mandatory, so the…
How does a Wisconsin criminal defense lawyer handle a client whose competency to stand trial is in doubt?
The opinion concludes that in criminal cases constitutional and Wisconsin competency law largely supplants SCR 20:1.14: when there is reason to doubt the client's competence the lawyer must notify…
What must a New Hampshire lawyer do when a non-client witness the lawyer called testifies falsely at a hearing?
The opinion concludes that if a lawyer knows a non-client witness testified falsely, the lawyer has a Rule 3.3 duty to take reasonable remedial measures, including disclosure to the tribunal if…
A resident who once sued the quasi-municipal entity I represent, in a case that settled, just got elected to its board and says I must resign as counsel. Do the ethics rules require that?
The panel concluded the Rules of Professional Conduct do not require the attorney to resign. Under Rule 1.13, the attorney represents the Entity, not its individual board members, so there is no…
I prosecute cases for a town police department. Can I defend a client at a probation-violation hearing where I'd have to cross-examine officers from that same department?
The panel concluded the attorney may not represent the client at the hearing. Because the attorney regularly prosecutes for the Department, cross-examining and possibly impeaching Department…
Can a Florida lawyer post about a client's matter on a listserv or online discussion group?
Only if the disclosure serves the client's interests and the client has not prohibited it. Where the client could be identified, the lawyer should get informed consent first.
Can a Colorado lawyer agree to a non-compete, anti-poaching, or broad confidentiality clause in a partnership or employment agreement?
Mostly no. The opinion concludes that any covenant in a partnership, shareholder, operating, or employment agreement violates Colo. RPC 5.6(a) if it restrains a lawyer's independent judgment for…
May a Maryland administrative judge require another judge to explain the reason for recusal?
Maryland Judicial Ethics Opinion 2025-32 permits an administrative judge to ask for recusal reasons but says the judge cannot require disclosure. Refusal to explain therefore does not violate Rule…
Are advance or blanket waivers of future conflicts enforceable for an Oregon lawyer, and can a firm rely on them?
Yes, qualified. The opinion concludes advance conflict waivers are permissible if the lawyer adequately explains the material risks and alternatives; enforceability turns on the waiver's…
May the same New Jersey lawyer serve as corporation counsel for a municipality and as general counsel for a regional fire and rescue organization that serves it?
No. The Committee found an inherent, nonwaivable per se structural conflict because corporation counsel owes loyalty to the municipality while regional fire and rescue counsel owes loyalty to the…
Can a former in-house lawyer act as a False Claims Act whistleblower (qui tam relator) against a former employer-client using information learned during the representation?
The committee concluded that a New York lawyer may not act as a relator in a False Claims Act qui tam action against a former client where the supporting information was obtained during the prior…
When a lawyer serves as a mediator, what must the lawyer tell the parties, and can the mediator exaggerate or bluff to push a settlement?
Under Rule 2.4 a lawyer-mediator must tell unrepresented parties that the mediator does not represent them and, where parties do not understand the process, explain how the neutral role differs from…
Must a family court judge recuse from cases involving an ex-spouse’s firm or the lawyer who handled the judge’s divorce?
West Virginia JIC Opinion 2025-14 disqualified the judge from family court matters involving the ex-spouse’s law partner and associate or the judge’s former divorce lawyer.
A bankruptcy trustee accuses me of malpractice in a concluded case, but has filed no suit, and my client wants me to keep representing him. Do I have a personal-interest conflict that forces me to withdraw?
The panel concluded no conflict of interest exists under these facts. A bare malpractice allegation from a third party (the bankruptcy trustee), with no suit or action filed, does not create the…
My client claims my firm missed a filing deadline and wants to settle the malpractice claim for money plus finishing the other case for free. Can we accept that settlement under the ethics rules?
The panel concluded the proposed settlement comports with the Rules of Professional Conduct. Rule 1.8(h)(2) permits a lawyer to settle a malpractice claim with a client or former client only if the…
When an Illinois personal-injury lawyer is appointed under 11 U.S.C. § 327(e) as special counsel to a Chapter 13 trustee to prosecute the lawyer's former client's uninsured-motorist claim, and the former client then fires the lawyer, must the lawyer withdraw?
The opinion concludes no. Because the claim became property of the bankruptcy estate under 11 U.S.C. § 541(a), the former client's interests are not adverse to the estate under Rule 1.9(a), and the…
Can a law firm agree to conditions a government demands that would limit or shape its practice, and what ethics rules does that implicate?
The opinion concludes that such agreements must be examined under the D.C. Rules for conflicts of interest in current or future matters adverse to that government (Rule 1.7), improper restrictions…
Can a New York lawyer ask former clients to write Google reviews and offer them a small gift for doing so?
The committee concluded a lawyer may ask a former client to write a Google review and may offer a nominal gift, provided the lawyer does not draft the review or condition the gift on its content,…
Can a lawyer at a firm that represents municipalities also take court appointments as assigned counsel for indigent criminal defendants?
The committee concluded the lawyer may accept assigned-counsel appointments if he complies with the conflict rules; where the firm represents a municipality that is or was a party to a potential…
Can a lawyer respond to a former client's negative online review using information about the representation, if that information is in public court filings or the client revealed it in the review?
No. The opinion concludes that information relating to a representation stays confidential under MRPC 1.6 even when it appears in public court filings or the client disclosed it in the review, and…
May a judicial law clerk continue teaching skills classes for an attorneys general association?
West Virginia JIC Opinion 2025-12 permitted the law clerk’s outside teaching if court duties take priority, the work is on personal time without court resources, classes are open to prosecution and…
May a judge make brief peace-themed remarks at a memorial organized by a political party committee?
West Virginia JIC Opinion 2025-13 permitted the judge to speak at the described memorial only with remarks limited to peace and rejection of violence, without discussion of the charged crime, the…
Can New York lawyers pay a referral fee to a partner who is licensed only in a foreign country, and must they supervise that partner's New York-related conduct?
The committee concluded that lawyers associated in the same firm may divide fees with a foreign-licensed partner under Rule 1.5(g), but the New York-admitted lawyers must supervise that partner…
When does a New York lawyer's strongly held personal, religious, political, or moral view create a Rule 1.7(a)(2) personal-interest conflict that requires the lawyer to decline or withdraw from a representation?
The opinion concludes such conflicts are rare; the Rules presume lawyers cultivate detachment and can subordinate personal views. A Rule 1.7(a)(2) conflict arises only when the lawyer subjectively…
Must a Missouri lawyer serving as guardian ad litem report another lawyer's serious misconduct when the report would reveal confidential information?
Not without authorization to disclose. The opinion concludes that a guardian ad litem remains subject to the Rules of Professional Conduct, but absent a valid court order may not report when Rule…
Who is the client of a Missouri city attorney, and whose directions control the representation?
The opinion identifies the city as the organizational client but leaves the identity of its duly authorized constituent to governing substantive law, which may recognize more than one official or…
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.