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 the opposing side subpoenas a lawyer to testify, can the lawyer keep representing his client in the same case?
Yes, until it becomes apparent the testimony is or may be prejudicial to the client. The opinion concludes that under Rule 3.7 a lawyer the opponent may call as a witness may continue as advocate unle…
Can a law partner of a part-time county prosecutor serve as special master, or as appointed defense counsel, in civil commitment (mental treatment) hearings?
Not if the county attorney participates. The opinion concludes that if the part-time county prosecutor takes part in commitment proceedings, no member of his firm may serve as special master or as app…
Does a lawyer's duty of confidentiality survive the client's death, and may the lawyer cooperate with police or testify about what the deceased client told them?
Yes, the duty survives death. The opinion concludes a lawyer owes a deceased client the same confidentiality as a living one and may not voluntarily aid a police investigation; the lawyer may reveal c…
Can the partners of a part-time city attorney defend criminal cases, and does it matter whether the case is in city court versus county or circuit court?
It depends on the court and the city's involvement. The opinion concludes the city attorney's partners may not defend criminal cases in City Court, but may defend in county or circuit court (or before…
Can a lawyer who is also licensed in another profession, such as a registered professional engineer, list that other licensure on letterhead, business cards, and advertisements?
Yes. The opinion concludes it is not improper for a lawyer licensed in another profession, but not actively practicing it, to include that professional licensure on letterhead, business cards, and adv…
Can a former city attorney later represent a city commissioner, as a private client, in a lawsuit over financial matters that arose while the lawyer held the city attorney position?
Not without the city's consent. The opinion concludes that under Rule 1.11(a), if the former city attorney participated personally and substantially in the matter as a public officer, he may not repre…
Can a lawyer charge a workers' compensation client for case expenses like travel and deposition costs separately from the statutory 25% cap on attorney's fees?
Yes, assuming the statute does not prohibit it. The opinion concludes a lawyer may, and indeed must, charge the workers' compensation client for expenses incurred in the representation separate from t…
Can a lawyer represent a current client against a former client when the two matters are unrelated and the lawyer holds no confidences usable against the former client?
Yes. The opinion concludes that under Rule 1.9 a lawyer need not withdraw from representing a present client against a former client where there is no substantial relationship between the matters and …
When a client fires a lawyer mid-case, can the lawyer charge for copying the file and hold the file until the copy costs are paid?
The opinion concludes a discharged lawyer may charge the actual cost of duplicating the file but, in a pending matter, may not condition release of the copy on prior payment; after the matter has conc…
What must a lawyer do with client trust-account funds, such as filing-fee refunds, when the client cannot be located?
The opinion concludes the lawyer must continue to hold and account for the funds and make reasonable efforts to locate the client, until the money is presumed abandoned under the Mississippi Uniform D…
Can a legal services lawyer open client files for inspection by auditors or evaluators from the funding legal services corporation?
No, not without the client's informed consent. The opinion concludes a legal services lawyer owes the same duty of confidentiality as any lawyer and may not reveal client confidences or secrets to the…
Can a lawyer charge interest on a client's overdue legal bill, and what does the lawyer have to do first?
Yes, with the client's agreement. The opinion concludes a lawyer may charge interest on a delinquent account only if the client is advised the charge will be made and agrees to pay interest once the a…
Can an Ohio lawyer send text messages to solicit prospective clients?
The opinion concluded that Ohio lawyers may use text messages to solicit prospective clients, because a text is a written or electronic communication under Prof. Cond. R. 7.2(a). The message must stil…
Can a lawyer running a virtual practice list a commercial mailbox (mail drop) as the only address in advertising, or on business cards and letterhead, instead of a physical office address?
Not in advertising. Rule 7.1(h) requires every advertisement to show the street address of the lawyer's principal office, so a mail drop alone is not enough. Business cards and letterhead may use a ma…
Can an Ohio lawyer practice in more than one law firm at the same time?
The opinion concluded that a lawyer may practice in more than one firm at the same time if the practice otherwise complies with the Rules of Professional Conduct. A lawyer in simultaneous multiple-fir…
After a lawyer leaves a firm, what must the firm do with the closed files of that lawyer's former clients, and when can it destroy them?
Per the Committee, the Texas rules set no detailed file-retention schedule, but their underlying principles control: protect client confidences, return files to a client on request, and do not destroy…
Can a Texas lawyer make a significant investment in a business that will compete with a former client whose confidential proprietary information the lawyer still holds?
Per the Committee, no, while the information remains relevant. Making a significant investment in a competitor uses the former client's confidential proprietary information to its disadvantage (Rule 1…
If a government lawyer is pursuing her own furlough complaint, can she also defend the agency against other employees' furlough complaints?
The opinion concludes that a government lawyer who is pursuing her own furlough complaint has an individual-interest conflict under Rule 1.7(b)(4) when asked to defend the agency against substantially…
Can a Virginia lawyer run a virtual law office or use a rented executive office suite as a firm location?
Yes. A lawyer may use a virtual office or shared executive suite, but must protect confidentiality when using cloud and third-party vendors, supervise remote lawyers and staff, and not list a shared o…
Must a legal services lawyer who reviewed a prospective client's file, but never appeared in the matter, report to the tribunal or to police that the person gave a false name and address and may have failed to register as a sex offender?
No. Because the lawyer never represented the person before the tribunal and never offered the false information as evidence, Rule 3.3 imposes no mandatory disclosure, and Rule 1.6(b)(2) is permissive …
Can a lawyer arrange for a client to pay a fact witness's travel expenses, and the witness's own legal fees, to secure the witness's testimony?
Yes. Under Rule 3.4(b) a lawyer may arrange a client's payment of a witness's reasonable travel expenses and reasonable legal fees, as long as the payment is not prohibited by law and is not contingen…
When a retiring lawyer sells a law practice, can the purchase price be structured as a percentage of fees the buyer earns after the sale?
Yes, within limits. Rule 1.17 lets a retiring lawyer take a share of post-sale fees as payment for goodwill if the amount and term fairly reflect the goodwill's value, but the lawyer may not be paid a…
I'm suing a club on behalf of a member, and I found a list of other members in the same situation through discovery. Can I write to them for information about the club's practices without triggering the lawyer-advertising solicitation rules?
It depends on what the letter says. The panel held the inquiring attorney may send a letter to Golf Club members seeking information about the client's case without complying with Rule 7.3, but the sp…
When a third party pays the lawyer's fees for the client and unused funds remain in the trust account at the end of the case, who gets the refund?
Per California Formal Opinion 2013-187, absent a fee agreement specifying otherwise, the lawyer must return the surplus to the third-party payor, not the client, because the concept of 'refund' implie…
After a homeowner consulted a lawyer about claims against the home's seller but never retained the lawyer, may the lawyer represent the contractor suing that homeowner for unpaid repair fees?
Possibly. Under Rule 1.18, the lawyer may take the contractor's case unless the lawyer received confidential information from the homeowner that would be significantly harmful in the fee dispute; if i…
If the opposing party's lawyer has withdrawn or been disbarred, may the other lawyer contact the opposing party directly to find out whether they have new counsel?
Yes. When a lawyer knows the adverse party's counsel has withdrawn from the matter or resigned from the bar, the no-contact rule (4.2) no longer applies and Rule 4.3 permits contacting the party to le…
Can a judge use Facebook and other social media, and can a judge be friends online with lawyers who appear before the judge?
A judge may use electronic social media but must comply with the Code of Judicial Conduct: avoid ex parte communications, avoid endorsing candidates, and evaluate any online connection with a lawyer o…
May a New Hampshire lawyer store client data in the cloud, and what steps does that require?
Yes. The opinion adopts the multistate consensus that a lawyer may use cloud computing if the lawyer takes reasonable steps to keep sensitive client information confidential and secure, staying compet…
Can I pay my paralegal a bonus based partly on how many cases they help settle and how much in fees those cases generate?
No. The panel held that basing a nonlawyer claims adjuster/paralegal's quarterly bonus on the number of cases the employee assists in settling and on the attorney's fees generated by those cases is a …
Can a lawyer take a finder's fee for introducing a client who needs capital to potential investors the lawyer also knows?
Yes. A finder's fee for matchmaking is a nonlegal service the rules permit, but only if the lawyer satisfies the confidentiality, conflict, business-transaction-with-client, and reasonable-fee rules; …
Can a replacement lawyer who knows of a letter of protection the prior lawyer signed to a healthcare provider disburse settlement funds to the client without paying the provider?
Per the Committee, no. Because the successor lawyer knows the healthcare provider claims an interest in the settlement funds under the letter of protection, Rule 1.14(c) requires keeping the disputed …
Can a Texas lawyer take a misdemeanor client's advance authorization to enter a no-contest or guilty plea in the engagement agreement, and can the lawyer do so while also being the client's bail bondsman?
Per the Committee, a lawyer may take advance plea authorization in the engagement agreement if, at that time, the client can make an informed decision about the plea. But if the lawyer is also the cli…
Can a Texas lawyer phone a real estate agent's client who asked the agent to have the lawyer call, even when the lawyer gives the agent ordinary holiday gifts?
Per the Committee, yes. Because the client requested the call through the agent, the lawyer is not soliciting someone who has not sought the lawyer's services, so Rule 7.03 and the barratry rule (Rule…
When a court appoints a lawyer to represent a child in a contested custody or visitation case, what role does the lawyer play and what are the professional responsibilities of each role?
The opinion identifies three roles and says the appointment order should specify which one. A 'Child's Attorney' provides traditional, client-directed representation and owes the child loyalty, confid…
Can a North Carolina lawyer who defended a company in workers' compensation cases move to a plaintiffs' firm that sues that company, and how must she be screened?
Yes. The opinion concludes she may join the plaintiffs' firm if she is timely screened from any matter she handled for the former client, any substantially related matter, and any matter on which she …
Can a North Carolina lawyer who mediated a dispute then draft a business contract for the two unrepresented parties who settled in the mediation?
No. The opinion concludes that a lawyer-mediator drafting a business contract jointly for the two pro se parties is a non-consentable concurrent conflict under Rule 1.7, even though Rule 1.12(a) would…
When does a North Carolina lawyer become a 'necessary witness' who cannot act as advocate at trial under Rule 3.7?
The opinion explains that a lawyer is a 'necessary witness' disqualified under Rule 3.7(a) only when the lawyer's testimony is relevant, material, and unobtainable by other means, and that whether a l…
Does a North Carolina lawyer have to include an office address when the firm name appears on a promotional item like a pen, mug, or vanity license plate?
No. The opinion concludes that the Rule 7.2(c) requirement to include the name and office address of a responsible lawyer does not apply to a gift or promotional item that displays only the lawyer's o…
Is a fee-division agreement between a departing lawyer and the firm enforceable under the ethics rules, or is it a forbidden restriction on the right to practice?
The opinion concludes the agreement complied with the rules. Because it was negotiated after the associate announced his departure, was not a condition of continued employment, did not deter him from …
Can a North Carolina lawyer join an online company's 'network' of lawyers that provides litigation or administrative support, like mortgage-default or eviction processing software, and takes a cut of each matter?
Only under conditions. The opinion concludes a lawyer may participate in such a network if the company is not practicing law or holding itself out as a legal-services provider, is not operating as a f…
Can a Florida lawyer store client files in the cloud using services like Dropbox or Google Drive?
Yes, if the lawyer takes reasonable precautions: confirming the provider's security, retaining adequate access to the data, and researching the provider before use.
Can a New Hampshire lawyer advertise that they are a "Million Dollar Advocate" or a member of the "Million Dollar Advocates Forum"?
Yes, but only with an appropriate disclaimer. Without one, the opinion concludes the claim is likely to create unjustified expectations about results and violates Rule 7.1(b) and (c).
Can a lawyer depose a person who is a named defendant but does not yet know about the lawsuit, without telling them the lawyer's client is adverse to them?
No. Under Rule 4.3 the lawyer must disclose that he is not neutral and that the deponent's interests are adverse, and advise the deponent to get counsel; deposing under a false pretense would violate …
Can a New York law firm list a lawyer admitted only in another state as 'of counsel,' and how must the firm show that lawyer's jurisdictional limits on its letterhead and website?
Yes. A New York firm may have an of-counsel relationship with a lawyer not admitted in New York and need not state the precise nature of the relationship, but Rule 7.5(d) requires disclosing the juris…
If a firm markets practice-succession planning to solo lawyers, is that advertising, and does a lawyer's agreement to take over a colleague's matters trigger the fee-sharing rule?
No on both. Communications only to other lawyers are not advertisements or solicitations, and a referral or take-over agreement does not make two lawyers 'associated' for fee-sharing unless their firm…
Can a lawyer contribute to a bar association fund that commissions a courthouse portrait honoring a retiring judge who will keep serving?
Yes. The portrait is a gift to the court, not to the judge, and the honor is not a 'thing of value' to the judge under Rule 3.5(a), so a lawyer may contribute and the bar association may solicit the c…
Can a Maine lawyer use cloud computing and online storage for confidential client data?
Yes, if the lawyer uses reasonable care to safeguard client information. Cloud computing triggers the same duties of competence, confidentiality, and safekeeping that always applied; the opinion lists…
Can a Texas lawyer check a potential client's payment history in a lawyer-shared database, set fees based on it, and later report the client's payments back to the database?
Per the Committee, yes, with the client's informed consent. Rule 1.02(b) lets the lawyer and client agree at the outset that the lawyer may check the database and adjust or end the representation, and…
When a former client files an ineffective-assistance-of-counsel claim, how much confidential information may the defense lawyer disclose to defend the representation?
The opinion concludes that D.C. Rule 1.6(e)(3) lets a lawyer whose former client raises an ineffective-assistance-of-counsel claim disclose protected information without first getting judicial approva…
Can a lawyer employed by a nonprofit credit-counseling agency provide legal services to the agency's clients and help the agency seek grants to fund those services?
Yes, if the agency lawfully offers legal services under Judiciary Law 495 and the lawyer gets each client's informed consent to third-party payment, keeps the agency from controlling his professional …
In a transactional negotiation, does a California lawyer have a duty to alert opposing counsel to (A) an apparent material error opposing counsel made or (B) a material change the lawyer made in revised contract language?
Per California Formal Opinion 2013-189, no duty arises in Scenario A if the lawyer did not induce opposing counsel's error; in Scenario B, once the lawyer realizes that an unintended defect in the red…
If a California lawyer receives from a third party what appears to be a privileged communication between opposing counsel and opposing counsel's client, can the lawyer read it under a crime-fraud theory?
Per California Formal Opinion 2013-188, the lawyer may not read the communication even if she suspects the crime-fraud exception applies; she must promptly notify opposing counsel and may not use the …
Can an Alabama lawyer share legal fees with an accountant or other non-lawyer for referring or working on a BP oil-spill claim?
No. Prosecuting a BP claim is the practice of law, so sharing the fee with a non-lawyer, or paying a non-lawyer for the referral, violates Rules 5.4(a), 5.5, and 7.2(c).
Can a criminal defense lawyer give the defendant client a copy of the prosecution's discovery materials?
No. Under Illinois Supreme Court Rule 415(c) the lawyer may not give the defendant a copy of discovery, but Rule 1.4 still requires the lawyer to review and discuss the contents with the client.
Can a lawyer pay a real estate agency a monthly fee to be listed as a 'Preferred Closing Attorney' with access to agents and meetings?
No. Paying for 'Preferred Closing Attorney' status violates Rule 7.2(c), because everything bought (the listing, advertising placement in the agency's office, and access to agents and meetings) is des…
Can a lawyer contact a represented government official directly to discuss a matter without the government attorney's consent?
Only for general policy issues. A lawyer may contact a represented government decision-maker about underlying policy without notice or consent, but may not contact them to settle or resolve the specif…
Can a lawyer represent clients against the agency where the lawyer's spouse used to work as agency counsel, when the spouse has left and they practice in different firms?
Yes. A lawyer may represent or serve as guardian for clients adverse to the Department of Social Services even though the lawyer's spouse formerly litigated those cases for DSS; Rule 1.8(k) does not a…
May a lawyer not admitted in Illinois run an Illinois immigration practice using a nonlawyer assistant?
Yes. Although Rule 5.5(b) bars an out-of-state lawyer from a systematic Illinois practice presence, the Rule 5.5(d)(2) federal-law exception lets an out-of-state lawyer practice immigration law (a fed…
Can a firm ask a foreclosure court for attorney fees based on a percentage of the debt when its actual contract with the client is a smaller flat fee?
The firm may apply for such fees, but if it petitions for more than the client is obligated to pay under the engagement, Rule 3.3 requires disclosing the contract terms to the court. The committee dec…
Can a lawyer be both the prosecutor and an administrative hearing officer for the same Illinois municipality?
No. Serving as the municipality's prosecutor while also acting as its administrative hearing officer is a Rule 1.7(a)(2) conflict: the lawyer's duty of impartiality as a quasi-judicial hearing officer…
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.