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 lawyer run a school that teaches laypeople how to file their own bankruptcy petitions pro se?
The opinion concluded that it is improper for lawyers, acting independently of any responsible sponsoring organization, to operate a school teaching laymen to prepare and file their own bankruptcy…
Can a lawyer continue a private client's appeal from a municipal court conviction while he is also retained by that same township to defend it in civil litigation?
No. The opinion concluded it would be improper for the attorney to appear for the private client on the appeal while he simultaneously represents the township in litigation against it; moving the…
Can a lawyer who drafted and witnessed a will charge a legal fee to appear before the surrogate's probate clerk to testify as a witness to that will?
No. The opinion concluded a lawyer is acting simply as a fact witness when testifying to a will before a surrogate or probate clerk, so no legal fee may be charged for that appearance; the matter…
Can a lawyer in a civil case threaten or help bring criminal charges, such as for perjury by the opposing side, to pressure a settlement?
No. The opinion concluded a lawyer must not, while the civil action is pending, threaten criminal action or participate in filing criminal charges to force a settlement; that conduct violates DR…
Can a board of education attorney serve as the board's labor negotiator with the teachers' union when his own wife is a full-time, non-tenure teacher employed by that board?
No. The opinion concluded it would be improper for the attorney to serve as the board's labor negotiator, because his wife's personal and financial interest in the negotiations could impair his…
Does the rule barring a municipal judge from political activity also bar his law partners and associates, and is the judge's dual role as school board attorney an ethics question for the committee?
The opinion concluded the dual-office question was for the judiciary, not the ethics committee, and held that the rule barring a municipal judge from political activity does not automatically extend…
Can a lawyer hand a written fee-schedule brochure to clients and prospective clients who come to the office?
The opinion concluded that a lawyer may give a truthful and dignified fee-schedule brochure to clients and prospective clients who come to the office, so long as the rates are not the product of an…
Can a lawyer who serves on a borough assembly, or the lawyer's firm, represent clients before that assembly?
The opinion concluded that an attorney who is a member of a legislative and quasi-judicial body, such as a borough assembly, may not practice or represent clients before that body, or before…
Can a lawyer who is sued by a former client over his own apartment rent represent himself and his wife pro se, or must he hire independent counsel?
Yes, he may appear pro se. The opinion concluded that an attorney sued by a former client may represent himself and his wife in the action, because he has the same fundamental right to…
When can a lawyer withdraw from a case after suit has been filed: no liability, client problems, or the lawyer's own illness?
The opinion summarized the grounds for withdrawal under DR 2-110: a lawyer may seek the court's permission to withdraw on becoming convinced there is no liability, for various client problems, for…
Can a lawyer feed the press a news story about a lawsuit he filed, or publicize his role in a case?
The opinion concluded that a lawyer should not instigate a news story highlighting his own involvement in a case, because that is indirect self-advertising; publicity genuinely in the client's…
Could a district judge prepare abstracts of title for profit while serving on the bench?
No. The Commission said the judge should not run the title-abstract business while serving, citing possible land-title litigation and continuing customer relationships.
Could a district judge continue serving on the Fayette County Board of Education?
No. The Commission said a district judge should not serve on a board of education, whether elected or appointed.
Can a legal aid staff attorney give the organization's board of directors a client's confidential financial-eligibility information without the client's consent?
The committee concluded that a legal aid attorney may not disclose a client's confidential financial information regarding eligibility to the foundation's board of directors without the client's…
Can a bank's lawyer have the borrower pay his fee, and can he represent both the bank and the borrower at a mortgage closing?
The opinion concluded that a lender's lawyer may have the borrower pay his fee for work actually performed, so long as the fee is not divided with the lay lending institution and the borrower is…
Can a lawyer who shares office space with an assistant district attorney still defend criminal cases in that county?
The opinion concluded that a lawyer who shares office space with an assistant district attorney, even with no fee- or business-sharing, may not practice criminal law in the county the assistant DA…
Can a law firm represent a wife in a divorce when one of its associates recently represented the husband's company in a related matter?
The opinion concluded that a firm may not represent the wife in a matrimonial action, absent the husband's consent, where an associate recently represented the husband's corporation on a matter (a…
What private legal work can a part-time county legislator take on without a conflict with the county he serves?
The opinion concluded that a part-time county legislator may take private matters where there is no actual or potential conflict, no improper influence, and no basis for public suspicion of…
Can a New York law firm with an out-of-state office list both addresses and each lawyer's bar admissions on its New York letterhead?
The opinion concluded that the New York letterhead of a multi-state firm may show both office addresses and each lawyer's admissions, including admission only in another state, provided a…
Could a circuit judge serve as a director of a local bank?
Yes, subject to disqualification in proceedings involving the bank or holding company, or the procedure the Commission referenced under Canon 3-C.
Could a circuit judge own stock in the holding company of a local bank?
Yes, subject to disqualification in proceedings involving the bank or holding company, or the procedure the Commission referenced under Canon 3-C.
Could a circuit judge own stock in a local bank?
Yes, subject to disqualification in proceedings involving the bank or holding company, or the procedure the Commission referenced under Canon 3-C.
Could a circuit judge help organize a bank, obtain approvals, and participate in its stock issuance and sale?
No. The Commission said that participating as an organizer in the charter, approval, and stock issuance and sale process would be contrary to the Canons of Judicial Ethics.
Can a lawyer who worked on a malpractice suit against a physician at his old firm later represent that physician in an unrelated divorce after moving to a new firm?
No. The opinion concluded it would be improper for the former associate and his present firm to represent the physician in the matrimonial action, because the physician's interests are hostile to…
Can a lawyer's partners or associates represent a party to a real estate deal that earns the agency a commission when the lawyer's commission-paid wife works there but did not handle that deal?
Yes. The opinion concluded there was no conflict of interest where the attorney's wife, paid by commission, had no connection with the transaction and would receive no financial benefit from it,…
Can a law firm keep handling a case against the State after hiring the former deputy attorney general who had substantial responsibility for that same matter, if he works in a separate office?
No. The opinion concluded the firm could not continue to oppose the State, because the former deputy attorney general had substantial responsibility for the matter, his disqualification is imputed…
Could a Maryland judge seek paid publication of articles about a foreign judicial system?
Yes, for the proposed legal writing. The Committee applied Canon XXX's permission for compensated writing on law, subject to its conditions on judicial duties and positive law.
Could judges solicit donations to restore courthouse art, or arrange for others to solicit under court sponsorship?
Judges could not participate in the proposed solicitation. The Committee allowed lawyers and other citizens to raise funds and give them to the committee only if judges had no role in choosing or…
Can a lawyer take collection suits referred by a commercial collection agency that handles the lawyer's retention and fees, where the agency is only the assignee of the creditors' claims?
Only on conditions. The opinion concluded that where the agency is merely the assignee, the creditor is the client, so the lawyer may be engaged only with the creditor's consent after full…
Can a township's municipal attorney review and approve deeds and easements that a developer must deliver to the township as a condition of planning board subdivision approval?
Yes. The opinion concluded that a municipal attorney's review, revision, or preparation of a deed of easement to the municipality required by the planning board incident to subdivision approval is…
Can a lawyer who helps a group set up a prepaid legal services plan then be hired by that group as its counsel under the plan?
It depends. The opinion concluded a lawyer may not solicit a group to organize a prepaid legal plan so that he can become its counsel, but may represent the organization if he is approached to…
Can a newly appointed magistrate or justice of the peace finish defending criminal cases he took on before taking the bench?
No. The committee held that a magistrate may not represent defendants in criminal cases in any court of criminal jurisdiction, so he may not complete a criminal defense begun before his appointment.
Can a prosecutor who handled a client's divorce also prosecute the other spouse for child nonsupport, or vice versa?
No to both. The committee held the power to prosecute for nonsupport is inherently coercive of the related divorce, regardless of motive, and the public-employee conflict rule bars later private…
Can a lawyer be city attorney while a law partner represents the county planning and zoning commission?
Qualified yes. The committee saw no inherent conflict between a city and a county planning and zoning commission, but said its answer could differ if their interests became adverse in a particular case.
Can a lawyer who has a victim's wrongful-death case also help the Commonwealth's attorney prosecute the murder without dropping the civil case?
Qualified yes. The committee allowed it where the lawyer merely assists and the Commonwealth's attorney keeps complete control of the prosecution, so the public role cannot be used to build or…
Can a lawyer employed by an insurance company do estate planning and draft wills and trusts for the insurer's customers?
No. The committee held the insurer would be engaged in the unauthorized practice of law and the lawyer would be aiding it, because an insurer with a financial stake cannot give the customer the…
Can a lawyer who has done work for a bank for years, without a retainer, take a case against the bank in an unrelated matter?
Yes. The committee held that, absent a continuing retainer, prior representation in unrelated matters does not bar adverse employment, and the frequency or length of past work does not change that.
Can a law firm whose members sit on a lender's board do the title examinations the lender refers to it for purchaser-mortgagors?
Yes. The committee held the firm represents only the mortgagee, not the borrower, so passing the fee to the borrower is not improper solicitation and the firm members' board seats are irrelevant.
Can a former assistant prosecutor defend a criminal case that arose during his tenure if he never worked on it and had no access to confidential information?
Yes. The committee held the former-public-employee bar reaches only matters the lawyer actually worked on or supervised, and the confidence bar reaches only matters he had access to, neither of…
Can a lawyer who drafted a deed defend a lawsuit seeking to set that conveyance aside?
Only if the case stays on legal issues. The committee said the lawyer may defend a suit raising only legal questions, but must decline or withdraw once contested factual issues arise on which he…
Can a lawyer sue a manufacturer for an injured worker when the lawyer's firm represents the worker's employer, who may be impleaded as a third-party defendant?
The opinion concluded that the lawyer should generally decline, because the employer his firm already represents is likely to be impleaded as a third-party defendant; he may take the case only if…
Can a West Virginia lawyer accept credit cards for payment of legal fees and expenses?
Formal Opinion 76-4 concluded that an attorney's participation in a credit-card plan for legal fees and expenses is not improper if the plan meets seven conditions, including that the client may…
Can a firm represent a husband in a divorce when it represented his current wife in her earlier divorce from a previous spouse about five years before?
No. The opinion concluded the attorney should withdraw and represent neither party, because in the wife's earlier divorce the firm might have learned confidential information about her assets,…
Can a New Jersey lawyer place a notice in the Law Journal or the Lawyers Diary and Manual advertising that he is available to act as a consultant to or associate with other attorneys in a particular field of law?
Yes. The opinion concluded it is not improper for a New Jersey lawyer to advertise his availability to act as a consultant to or associate with another attorney in a particular field of law by…
Can a collection-practice law office use a letterhead that drops any reference to being a law firm, and can it list a non-lawyer office administrator on the letterhead?
No. The opinion concluded that a letterhead omitting any reference to a law firm is misleading and prohibited, and that naming an office administrator, whether a lawyer or a layman, on the…
Did stock in a closely held corporation require recusal from a fellow stockholder’s case?
The Commission said the judge should disqualify or use Canon 3D if the relationship created bias or prejudice for the fellow stockholder; the number of owners and tax status were immaterial.
Did a judge’s regular borrowing from a bank require recusal when the bank appeared in court?
Borrowing alone did not compel recusal, but the Commission called for disclosure to counsel and recusal if either counsel objected; bank stock or bias could independently require disqualification.
Did a judge’s life insurance policy require recusal when the insurer was a party?
Only if the case outcome could substantially affect the policy interest’s value; then the Commission said to recuse or use the Canon 3D procedure.
Can one lawyer represent two co-defendants on a criminal appeal when their interests conflict, if both waive the conflict?
The opinion concluded a single attorney may not continue to represent two co-defendants in a criminal appeal where vigorous representation of one would impugn the other's testimony and shift…
When did a judge’s investment-club membership require disqualification from cases involving club members or a company it owned?
Membership alone did not require recusal from a club member’s case absent bias, but the Commission said the judge was disqualified when the managed club held stock in a litigant company.
Can a district attorney also serve on a bar association's attorney grievance committee?
The opinion concluded that a district attorney may not serve on a bar association grievance committee, because the statutory duty of confidentiality owed by a grievance-committee member is…
Does leaving the Attorney General's office or another state agency bar a lawyer or law clerk from later working for a firm that is in litigation against the State?
No, not per se. The opinion concluded that the bar applies only where the person had substantial responsibility for the adversarial litigation while in public employment; if so, either the lawyer…
Could an active supernumerary circuit judge accept a seat on the Cahaba River Commission?
The Commission said it was desirable for the judge not to accept because the position involved policy matters outside the law; it offered to reconsider if qualifying provisions applied.
Is there a conflict of interest when a municipal attorney's spouse serves on the elected board of education of the same municipality?
No, not per se. The opinion concluded the marital relationship creates no inherent conflict, but the attorneys may have to withdraw when a matter arises involving both public bodies if the…
Can a county legislator defend criminal cases in the same county, and does it matter how the district attorney's office is funded?
The opinion concluded that a county legislator may not defend criminal cases in his county where the district attorney's office is funded through a 'line item' budget that fixes prosecutorial…
Can a part-time county district attorney represent a private client suing the county for civil damages?
The opinion concluded that a part-time county prosecutor may not represent a private client in a civil damages action against the county, because the county is his client regardless of his…
Can a former city councilman sue the city for false arrest over an arrest made during his term in office?
The opinion concluded that a former city councilman may represent a false-arrest plaintiff against the city, even for an arrest made during his term, unless he had substantial responsibility for…
When a board member gives a board's attorney background information 'in confidence,' can the board later compel the attorney to hand that material over?
Yes. The opinion concluded that the privilege belongs to the board, the actual client, not the individual member; because the member consulted the attorney in his role as board counsel rather than…
May a lawyer invest a client's funds held in trust or escrow in an interest-bearing account, and is the lawyer required to do so?
The opinion concluded a lawyer is not required to invest trust funds, but may place them in an interest-bearing account if DR 9-102 and R. 1:21-6 are met; any interest belongs to the client, who…
Must a borough attorney report to the ethics committee that the mayor, a licensed but non-practicing lawyer, took unauthorized fees for performing marriages?
Yes. The opinion concluded that because the borough attorney learned of the conduct from a source other than the mayor, the information was not privileged, so DR 1-103 required reporting it to the…
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.