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 New Jersey lawyer charge interest on a client's overdue legal-fee bill?
Yes, if the lawyer made clear at the outset that interest at a lawful rate would be charged if the fee is not paid within 30 days after the client receives a written statement; this modified an…
Can a law firm sue a current client on one matter while still representing that same client on an unrelated matter?
No, absent consent. The opinion holds a firm may not litigate against a current client, even on an unrelated matter, unless all parties give informed consent and no confidences are betrayed; one…
Can a lawyer pay a Welcome Wagon type service to deliver the lawyer's welcome letter and pamphlet to newcomers in the community to promote the lawyer's practice?
No; the opinion concluded paying a private intermediary that is not a qualified referral service to recommend or promote the lawyer's services to potential clients violated the disciplinary rules…
Did a judge’s wife working as a local lawyer’s bookkeeper automatically disqualify the judge from matters involving that firm?
No. The Commission said the described employment was allowed and alone did not cause disqualification under Canon 3C; it also directed attention to Canon 5C.
Could a judge join a family partnership whose property was leased to the Alabama ABC Board?
Yes. The Commission said participation in the partnership doing business with the state did not violate the Canons, while calling attention to Canons 3C and 5C.
Could a Maryland court master ask lawyers appearing before the master to support a judicial appointment?
Yes, if the master merely disclosed the candidacy and welcomed voluntary support without requiring an answer or any report of action, so no actual or implied pressure arose.
Can a firm that regularly does insurance defense work take plaintiff's cases against defendants insured by those same insurance companies?
The opinion concluded that the firm represents both the insured and the insurer, and may take a plaintiff's case against an insurer's insured without the insurer's consent if the plaintiff gives…
Can a North Carolina lawyer certify title or give a title opinion on real property the lawyer (or the lawyer's firm) personally owns, is selling, or is buying?
The opinion concluded that a lawyer or the lawyer's firm may not certify title when the lawyer is the seller or has a beneficial interest in the selling entity, but may certify title on a purchase…
Can a lawyer employed by a life insurance company to prepare estate plans also draft the customer's will?
The opinion concluded that a lawyer employed full time by a life insurance company to prepare estate plans for its customers may not also draft and supervise a customer's will, because the dual role…
Must a court-appointed attorney who has been discharged return the client's file to the client on request?
The committee concluded a court-appointed attorney has an ethical duty to return the client's file on request, even after the attorney has been discharged. Decided under Virginia's former Code.
May a Maryland judge recommend a candidate for judicial appointment without being asked?
Yes. The Committee concluded that solicited and unsolicited recommendations for judicial appointment did not violate the cited canons or separation-of-powers provision, while cautioning about…
May a Maryland judge be honored at a dinner whose incidental surplus is later donated to charity?
Yes, on the stated facts. The Committee found the dinner honored work on race relations rather than raising money, and the incidental possible surplus did not turn attendance into solicitation.
May a Maryland judge lease a small former law office to a lawyer who appears before the judge and personally collect rent?
Yes, on the stated facts. The Committee allowed the lease, cases involving the tenant, and the judge’s own lease negotiations and rent collection as minimal property management.
Can an attorney licensed only in Indiana list under 'attorney' in the Louisville, Kentucky yellow pages with an Indiana office and phone number?
No. A directory listing in Kentucky for a lawyer admitted only in Indiana is misleading because it implies Kentucky practice the lawyer cannot lawfully perform; Bates does not change that result.
Can a paralegal argue a motion in court for the employing lawyer's client if the client knows the paralegal is not a lawyer and the lawyer has briefed the paralegal?
No. Appearing in court to argue a motion is the practice of law, so a paralegal may not do it even with client consent and lawyer preparation.
Can a law partner or associate of a city attorney defend criminal cases in district or circuit court?
Qualified yes. The partner or associate may defend a criminal action arising outside the city, but may not defend in district or circuit court where the offense occurred in the city or the city…
Can a lawyer advertise that he or she is in the general practice of law?
Qualified yes. Because the advertising rule lets a lawyer state the type of services rendered, including any limitation or concentration of practice, the committee found the words 'general practice'…
Can a lawyer put a paralegal's name, address, and phone number on the firm's business cards and letterhead?
Qualified yes. The committee brought its earlier opinions into conformity with the Supreme Court's new paralegal rule (SCR 3.700), permitting a paralegal's name on cards and letterhead as qualified…
Can a lawyer co-own a corporation with a nonlawyer that handles a landlord's entire eviction process and hires the lawyer to do the legal work?
The opinion concluded that a lawyer may not enter such an arrangement, because it risks aiding the unauthorized practice of law, sharing fees and a law partnership with a nonlawyer, and compromising…
Can married lawyers appear on opposite sides of a matter, and what about their separate firms opposing each other?
The opinion concluded that one lawyer-spouse appearing directly against the other is per se improper, while the spouses' separate firms or offices opposing each other is not barred per se but…
Can a former district attorney accept appointment as special prosecutor when he is likely to be called as a witness in the same matter?
The opinion concluded that representing the state in both matters created no disqualifying conflict, but the lawyer-as-witness rule bars accepting the appointment if he knows or it is obvious he may…
Can a lawyer represent a private client suing a county while, in a separate case, representing that same county?
The opinion concluded that lawyers who are county officials are barred from suing the county for a private client, while county employees and private practitioners may do so in separate matters only…
Can a paralegal who is also a licensed real estate broker handle a client's real estate closing if the file was prepared under an attorney's supervision?
The opinion concluded that a paralegal may not appear for the client at a closing, because the client is entitled to have the legal effect of the documents explained by the attorney, and a paralegal…
Can a law firm present its own public legal seminars without a bank or other institution as sponsor?
The opinion concluded that a firm may present public seminars if the lawyers are motivated to educate the public rather than to obtain employment, with the conduct judged objectively after the…
Can a lawyer for one convicted defendant file an amicus brief for a co-defendant who is separately represented, after they ran inconsistent defenses at trial?
The opinion concluded the lawyer is not automatically barred, but only with full disclosure and consent from both defendants and only if it would not adversely affect the lawyer's own client, who…
Can a lawyer or law office practice under a trade name rather than the lawyers' own names?
The opinion concluded that, under the rules then in force, a lawyer or law office could not operate under a trade name, reaffirming a prior opinion that a name like 'City Legal Clinic' was improper.
When a lawyer is appointed guardian of an incompetent person, can the lawyer also charge the ward's estate for legal services as attorney for the guardian?
The opinion concluded that serving as both guardian and attorney and charging for legal services is not prohibited under Wisconsin law, but the lawyer has an ethical duty to charge only a reasonable…
Can a lawyer add interest to a bill that goes unpaid for 30 days?
The opinion concluded that a lawyer may charge interest on delinquent accounts only if the client was told in advance and agreed to it; a generic 'finance charge' or 'late charge' line on statements…
Can a law firm that serves as counsel to labor unions advertise in the union's trade paper, and say it is counsel for the local unions?
The opinion concluded that a firm may advertise its availability in a union trade journal, including that it is counsel for the local unions, provided the advertisement is not false, misleading,…
Can a lawyer draft a will for a law partner's spouse that leaves the partner the entire estate, excluding the children?
The opinion concluded that a lawyer may not draft a will for a partner's spouse in which the partner would receive a larger share of the estate than he or she would take by intestacy. Because the…
When may a former Nebraska city-attorney staff lawyer represent a private client in an action against the city?
The lawyer could not take a matter handled by the city-attorney staff during the lawyer's tenure or use city confidences, but could take a later matter of the same general kind if no confidence was abused.
May a Nebraska county attorney serve on the board of a legal-services corporation operating in the county?
Yes under the cited ABA standards, provided the board confined itself to broad policy and did not interfere with staff lawyers or influence their independent judgment in individual cases.
May a Nebraska lawyer form a partnership with a nonlawyer to provide lobbying services?
Yes under the 1980 opinion if none of the partnership's activities involved practicing law. A separate simultaneous law practice raised additional concerns under the former Code.
May a Nebraska lawyer participate in a prepaid legal-services plan that limits members to lawyers selected or approved by the plan?
No. The plan's closed panel denied members the former rule's right to choose other counsel and lacked relief and review procedures for claims that panel representation was improper or inadequate.
May a Nebraska lawyer bid personally at a public estate auction when the lawyer's firm represents the personal representative?
No. The opinion treated the bid as prohibited self-dealing and held that court approval or statutory exceptions did not make the purchase ethical under the former Code.
Could a Nebraska lawyer use 'Legal Clinic,' 'Law Building,' or 'Law Center' as a practice or office-building name?
No under the 1980 opinion. The committee required names identifying the lawyer or partners and treated the additional trade-name phrases as potentially misleading and deceptive.
May the law partner of an elected Nebraska technical-college board member serve as the board's legal counsel?
No under the opinion. The board member could influence selection, workload, fees, and payment while sharing the firm's proceeds, creating a conflict and appearance problem.
Could a lawyer who recently represented both spouses in shared business and property matters represent the husband in their divorce?
Opinion 80-21 said the lawyer should decline to represent the husband against the wife. The divorce would divide legal relationships and assets the lawyer had helped both spouses create.
Could a part-time Vermont probate judge buy property from an estate pending in that judge's court through an agent?
Opinion 80-20 said the judge could not buy an asset from an estate pending before the judge's court, either directly or anonymously through an agent, because the purchase would raise an appearance…
Could a Nebraska lawyer tell a local newspaper's society editor about the lawyer's continuing-education trips?
No under the 1980 opinion. The committee inferred that supplying the information served only a self-laudatory publicity purpose prohibited by former DR 2-101(A).
Could two separate Vermont lawyers share office resources and represent opposite sides of a transaction?
Opinion 80-15 allowed opposite-side representation where the lawyers shared only limited facilities and did not practice or present themselves as a firm. It called for telling clients they were…
Could a lawyer defend a former client's first husband in a criminal case where the former client would testify?
Opinion 80-14 said the lawyer should withdraw from defending the first husband because cross-examining the lawyer's former divorce client could expose or appear to use her confidences. Withdrawal…
Could a Vermont lawyer form a mediation business with a social worker for separation and divorce matters?
Opinion 80-12 allowed the proposed joint mediation service only on the assumption that it provided mediation rather than legal services and did not hold itself out as a law practice. The…
Could Nebraska lawyers use a partnership-style firm name if they added the words 'Not a Partnership'?
No. The opinion treated a partnership-style law-firm name as a prohibited and misleading claim of partnership, and held that the disclaimer did not cure it.
How may a Vermont firm use and pay an out-of-state lawyer who is not yet admitted in Vermont?
Opinion 80-10 treats the unadmitted lawyer as a law clerk for Vermont client work under the admitted lawyer's responsibility and discourages direct fee sharing, while allowing salary to reflect…
Did Nebraska Opinion 80-1 require a defense lawyer to deliver third-party physical evidence and then withdraw?
It did in 1980, but the archive flags the opinion as rescinded by Opinion 87-1. The later opinion declined to decide the legal delivery duty and rejected automatic withdrawal in every case.
Could a lawyer handle an appeal against a former client arising from the same transaction the lawyer handled for that client?
Opinion 80-08 said the lawyer should decline the appeal against the former client, even though the proposed client had once been the lawyer's adversary and had later hired the lawyer in another…
Could Vermont Housing Finance Agency counsel speak directly with represented developers under a blanket authorization from their lawyers?
Opinion 80-05 permitted direct contact if the developers' counsel gave blanket authorization. Their counsel could revoke it at any time; direct contact would then stop unless renewed consent was obtained.
Could a Vermont lawyer who certified a client's title later defend that client in a boundary dispute involving possible negligence in the title work?
The opinion found no present conflict after disclosure, but said the lawyer should offer to withdraw if the lawyer might be a witness and could not continue after learning the title work was negligent.
Can a law firm keep a deceased partner's name in the firm name when it adds a new partner, even though some current lawyers never practiced with the deceased partner?
The opinion concluded it was professionally proper to retain a deceased member's name in the firm name where the firm is a bona fide successor in a continuing line and the public is not misled, and…
Can a law firm provide arbitrator-evaluation and grievance-research legal work to two lay associations that, in turn, sell that work to their own member jurisdictions?
The opinion concluded the arrangement was professionally improper, because placing lay associations as intermediaries between the lawyers and the jurisdictions for whom particularized legal services…
Can an Illinois lawyer accept and act on debt-collection claims forwarded by an out-of-state corporation that solicited those claims from creditors and charged a flat fee to connect them with a lawyer?
The opinion concluded it was professionally improper for a lawyer to accept and act on claims forwarded by a corporation that solicited them, because the corporation was engaged in the unauthorized…
After defending a client on a traffic ticket from an accident, can another lawyer in the same firm later defend the personal-injury claim that the former client brought over the same accident?
The opinion concluded it was professionally improper, and that the firm had to withdraw, because representing a client on the traffic charge and then opposing his injury claim from the same accident…
Can a law firm that opened a branch office mail every postal patron in the community a letter announcing the office and listing the firm's fields of practice?
The opinion concluded it was not improper for the firm to mail all postal patrons a letter announcing the new branch office and stating the firm's areas of practice, because the letter was a…
Can a lawyer with a sports-law practice tell college athletic directors and coaches he is available to represent athletes, and run that player representation from his regular law office?
The opinion concluded that representing athletes in contract negotiations and business counseling is the practice of law, so it was professionally proper to conduct that player representation from…
Can different lawyers in the same public defender's office represent co-defendants who have an actual conflict, and does a court 'gag order' cure it?
The opinion concluded that separate lawyers in one public defender's office may not represent co-defendants where an actual conflict exists, absent valid consent, and that a court 'gag order'…
Can a law firm hire a salaried nonlawyer to provide collective-bargaining services to the firm's clients, as long as that person gives no legal advice?
The opinion concluded it was not per se improper to employ a salaried layperson to render collective-bargaining services where the firm supervises the work and retains responsibility, but it would…
Can a New Jersey lawyer use the title 'Doctor' for a J.D., and may a lawyer advertise a Ph.D. in Spanish or fluency in Spanish?
A lawyer admitted in New Jersey may use the J.D. degree and the title 'Doctor' because it indicates legal training, but may not list a non-law 'Ph.D. in Spanish' on a card or letterhead; the…
Can a prosecutor in a criminal case call another prosecutor from the same district attorney's office to testify as a witness?
The Committee concluded that DR 5-102 applies to a district attorney's office and everyone practicing in it as though they were a single firm, so when a prosecutor in the office ought to be called…
Can a lawyer serve as both the executor of an estate and the attorney for that estate, and collect a fee for each role?
Yes to both. The committee concluded a lawyer may serve in the dual capacity of executor and attorney for the same estate, and may be paid a fee for each position, provided the lawyer complies with…
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.