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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May a municipal judge order defendants into a domestic violence course operated by the judge’s lawyer-tenant?
No. The Commission says the judge must recuse from cases where the program is an option, and cannot continue leasing to that lawyer if such cases would regularly come before the court.
May a full-time referee who regularly sits as a special circuit judge continue while running for the state legislature?
No on these facts. The Commission treats the referee as a judge pro tempore and applies Canon 7A(2)’s resignation rule for candidacy for nonjudicial office.
May a family court judge advocate for renewal of a refuge center’s grant before the grant decision group?
West Virginia JIC Opinion 2006-03 advises the judge against the requested grant-renewal advocacy because the center may house people whose domestic disputes come before family court.
May a Missouri lawyer secretly record a conversation with a nonclient when the lawyer is a participant?
Yes, absent illegality, a statement or implication that no recording was occurring, or a current-client conversation. Current clients had to receive general or specific notice.
May a Missouri settlement require a party to withdraw, withhold, or stop cooperating with a lawyer-discipline complaint?
No. Entering or attempting such a settlement prejudiced the administration of justice. The parties could resolve their private dispute and report that resolution, but could not suppress disciplinary…
What must a Louisiana lawyer do with funds or property belonging to a missing client?
The lawyer must keep the property safeguarded and make reasonable, proportionate efforts to locate the client and deliver it. After those efforts are exhausted, the opinion points to Louisiana's…
Could a Colorado judge testify as a character witness for a former client under subpoena?
The Board barred voluntary character testimony but said a judge must comply with a subpoena. It asked the judge to consider whether justice required the testimony and, if not, whether to discourage…
May a university public-law institute director also serve as a municipal judge pro tem when court fees support the institute?
The committee found no conflict on the facts presented, including the director's arrangement that no judicial education fees fund personal salary or benefits. It required the judge to take leave…
Can a New York law firm ask a client to sign an advance waiver agreeing not to object if the firm later represents another client against it?
Yes. A firm may obtain an advance waiver of future conflicts if it adequately discloses the implications, advantages, and risks so the client can give informed consent, and a disinterested lawyer…
Could an Arkansas district judges’ council contribute to candidates for the state legislature?
No. The Committee concluded that the council of judges could not make direct or indirect political contributions to legislative candidates.
Can a lawyer run a radio or TV ad using a celebrity client's testimonial, name the celebrity, and pay the celebrity for their time?
A lawyer may use a celebrity client's testimonial, and name the celebrity, so long as it is not false, deceptive, or misleading and the ad meets the record-keeping rules. The lawyer may not pay or…
Must a Georgia lawyer who supervises a real estate closing hold the closing proceeds in an IOLTA or interest-bearing trust account?
Yes. Under Georgia FAO 04-1, a lawyer who supervises a real estate closing is a fiduciary as to the closing proceeds and must keep them in an IOLTA account (if nominal or short-term) or an…
Can a solo attorney call the firm 'The X Law Group' if the firm has associate attorneys?
The opinion concluded that a solo practitioner may name the firm 'The X Law Group,' where X is the practitioner's surname, if X employs one or more attorneys as associates; 'Group' and 'Law Group'…
Can a judge or magistrate keep an active real estate salesperson license?
The opinion concluded that a full-time judge or full-time magistrate may not maintain or use an active real estate salesperson license, because affiliating with a broker and owing fiduciary duties…
May a part-time active-retired judge practice law, consult, mediate, and help charities raise funds?
Yes within the Canons applicable to that status. The Commission permits law and mediation work subject to impartiality and duty limits, and permits cautious fundraising without judicial title or…
What must a lawyer disclose to multiple clients before settling their claims together in an aggregate settlement?
A lot, and not in advance. The opinion concludes Rule 1.8(g) requires the lawyer to tell each client the total settlement, every client's claims and share, the lawyer's fees and costs, and how costs…
Can a lawyer store confidential client files electronically on a third party's server, outside the lawyer's exclusive control, without violating confidentiality?
The Committee concluded that the duty under SCR 156 (now NRPC 1.6) is not absolute and that a lawyer may store confidential client information electronically with an outside agency, just as with…
Could a full-time Colorado judge give anonymous legal advice on a call-a-lawyer hotline?
No. The Board said answering callers' legal questions would be practicing law even without pay or attribution. The judge could instead encourage lawyers' pro bono work or advise the program.
Can a New York lawyer join a business networking organization whose members are required to bring or exchange referrals?
No. The committee reaffirms that a lawyer may not participate in an organization that requires the lawyer to refer clients in exchange for other members' referrals, and concludes a lawyer also may…
Can a city attorney advise a city ethics board investigating an ethics complaint filed against a majority of the city council?
No. The Committee concludes the city attorney's representation of the ethics board against most of the city council reasonably appears to be adversely limited by his own employment interests under…
If a lawyer is appointed by a court as a receiver, can the lawyer pay part of the receiver fee to the lawyers for the parties?
No. The Committee concludes a lawyer/receiver may not pay any part of the receiver fee to the parties' lawyers, because accepting it would violate Rule 1.08(e) for those lawyers and would make the…
Can a lawyer acting for themselves contact a company's management directly when the company regularly uses counsel?
Yes, usually. The opinion concludes a lawyer acting on their own behalf on a non-litigation matter may contact a represented organization's management directly, unless the lawyer has been told to…
Can lawyers working in a railroad's claims department contact injured workers who are already represented by counsel, to verify representation, ask why they hired a lawyer, or request medical records?
No. The opinion concludes the railroad's claims-department lawyers (the department head and the attorney/claims agents) represent the railroad in these claims, so Rule 4.2 bars them from…
How may a Minnesota law firm identify and use paralegals and other non-lawyer staff?
The opinion allows firms to list clearly identified paralegals on letterhead, cards, signs, and directories and to have them sign firm correspondence at an attorney's direction, while non-lawyers…
Can a Minnesota lawyer accept a gratuity from a court reporting service the client pays for?
The opinion concludes a lawyer should not accept, or let a non-lawyer employee accept, a gratuity from a court reporting or similar service for which a client is expected to pay unless the client…
Are the Minnesota Lawyers Professional Responsibility Board's advisory ethics opinions binding on lawyers and the courts?
Not on the court. The opinion states the Board's advisory opinions are rule interpretations that guide lawyers' conduct, but they are not binding on the Minnesota Supreme Court and may change over time.
May a judge be honored at a Boy Scouts fundraising dinner, or merely attend?
The letter indexed by West Virginia JIC as 2006-01 says the judge could attend the Friends of Scouting dinner but could not serve as its honoree because it was a fundraiser.
May an Illinois judge serve on a bank’s advisory board of directors?
No. The Committee applied former Rule 65C(2) to bar service on a bank board intended to advance its commercial purpose, even when advisory and compensated per meeting.
Can a North Carolina lawyer for a publicly traded company disclose confidential information to the SEC under SEC Rule 205, even when the state confidentiality rule would not permit it?
Yes. The opinion concludes that a North Carolina lawyer who appears and practices before the SEC may 'report out' confidential information as permitted by SEC Rule 205 without violating the North…
Can a North Carolina law firm use a website URL, like Asbestos-Mesothelioma.com, that does not identify the site as belonging to a law firm?
Yes, with a condition. The opinion concludes a firm may use a URL that does not include words identifying it as a law firm's website, so long as the URL is not otherwise false or misleading and the…
When a North Carolina lawyer charges a 'minimum fee' billed against an hourly rate and then leaves the firm, must the firm refund the unearned portion to the clients?
Yes. The opinion concludes that a minimum fee billed against the lawyer's hourly rate is client money that belongs in the trust account until earned, not a true retainer or flat fee that may be…
When a third party pays a North Carolina lawyer's fee for a client, who owns the unearned funds and what must the lawyer do if the payor demands them back?
It depends on the source and the fee type. The opinion concludes a lawyer generally follows the client's directive for funds belonging to the client and owes no duty to a stranger merely claiming an…
Can a North Carolina real estate firm hold recording and courier costs in a separate non-trust account and keep the markup if actual costs come in lower?
Only with safeguards. The opinion concludes that funds collected at a closing to pay recording and courier costs remain client funds until disbursed, so a 'Recording Account' holding them must be a…
Can a North Carolina lawyer run an internet-only virtual law firm and offer clients unbundled, limited-scope legal services?
Yes to both. The opinion concludes a lawyer may operate a virtual practice delivered entirely over the internet so long as the lawyer avoids unauthorized practice and out-of-state advertising…
When could a Colorado judge recommend a lawyer to a friend or family member?
The Board allowed recommendations only to friends or relatives close enough that the judge would automatically recuse from their case, regardless of the recommendation.
Can a trial lawyer ask the judge to instruct jurors that they may talk to the lawyers after the verdict?
Only if the requested instruction states the Rule 3.5(d) limits completely, including that the lawyer may never ask about the jury's deliberations. If the lawyer's purpose is to get jurors talking…
Can a lawyer draft a client's will that names the lawyer as executor and then hire herself as counsel to the estate?
There is no per se bar, but the lawyer's personal interest in the fiduciary and counsel fees creates a Rule 1.7 conflict. The lawyer must exercise independent judgment under Rule 2.1 and may take…
Is it a conflict of interest for a lawyer to sue a corporation whose board of directors includes the lawyer's partner, and can screening, the partner's resignation, or withdrawal cure it?
Yes. The opinion concludes the partner-director's fiduciary duty to the corporation creates a Rule 1.7(a)(2) conflict that imputes to the suing partner under Rule 1.10; it can be cured by client…
Does an attorney appointed Commissioner in Chancery have a conflict of interest under Rule 1.11 because of prior representations handled by the attorney or the attorney's law partner?
No. The opinion concludes Rule 1.11 disqualifies a public-officer attorney only where the attorney personally and substantially participated in the same matter while in private practice; because…
In Virginia, can a criminal defense lawyer choose a bench trial, waiving the client's right to a jury, without the client's authorization, and is failing to tell the court the client never consented a misrepresentation?
No on both points. The opinion concludes waiving a jury trial is a decision reserved to the client under Rule 1.2(a), so the lawyer's unilateral election violated that rule; and electing a bench…
When a lawyer leaves a firm, must the departing lawyer tell the old firm which clients he contacted and what his departure letters said, and was a notice letter that mentioned Bar Ethics Counsel misleading?
No. The opinion concludes the Rules impose no duty to give the former firm the client list or the letters (Rule 1.16(d) protects clients, not the firm's oversight), and the quoted notice letter,…
Can a local government attorney represent the Zoning Administrator suing the Board of Zoning Appeals in one case while representing the BZA in an unrelated appeal?
The opinion concludes this is a direct-adversity concurrent conflict under Rule 1.7(a)(1), because the lawyer would be advocating against a current client (the BZA) even on an unrelated matter; it…
May a municipal judge hear cases involving an attorney who shares the judge’s law firm secretary and plans to rent space in a building partly owned by the judge?
No. The Commission found the judge disqualified when the attorney represents a party because the judge and his law firm receive income from the attorney.
May a newly appointed judge continue serving without pay as shareholders’ agent for a bank-sale escrow?
Yes on the submitted facts. The Commission found that the fiduciary role met Canon 5D’s conditions because it would not interfere with judicial duties or involve matters ordinarily before the judge.
Is a judge disqualified because the defendant in a criminal case works for the same school board as the judge’s spouse?
No on the stated facts. Shared employment alone did not require disqualification where neither the spouse nor the school board was a party and neither the judge nor spouse had an interest affected…
How long should a Louisiana lawyer retain closed client files?
The opinion identifies no comprehensive retention rule and directs each practice to adopt a policy tailored to its clients and matters, with then-current property records preserved for at least five years.
If a client files grievances and pro se motions against me but not about the issue still on appeal, do I have to keep representing the client on that appeal?
Generally yes. The Committee concludes the lawyer must continue the appeal on the remaining matter unless permitted to withdraw under Rule 1.15(b) and the court does not order continued…
Can a lawyer accept payment from the media for the rights to the lawyer's own story about an ongoing case?
The opinion concludes that Rule 1.8(c), which bars a lawyer from acquiring literary or media rights to an account based on the representation before it concludes, does not apply where the media (not…
Can a law firm keep its office in the same building as a lawyer who resigned in lieu of disbarment, and does a locked connecting door cure the problem?
The committee said RPC 5.8(b)(2) prohibits a lawyer from maintaining a law office in a room or office occupied or used, in whole or in part, by a person who resigned in lieu of disbarment; if that…
Can a Washington lawyer advertise a discount coupon for legal services?
Yes, with a caveat. The committee concluded there is nothing inherently unethical about a discount coupon for legal services as long as the discount is honored according to its terms (RPC 8.4(c));…
Can a Washington lawyer pay an annual fee to be listed in a for-profit online and telephone legal directory that lets the public search by location and practice area?
Yes, as described. The committee concluded that, provided the listing fee is reasonable and not a disguise for indirectly sharing fees with the for-profit publisher, participating in the directory…
Can a lawyer who is also a shareholder address the represented corporation's board of directors at a shareholders' meeting about a dispute?
Yes, within limits. The committee concluded that, assuming the lawyer speaks only as an individual, about matters common to all shareholders, and not about a current individual dispute, RPC 4.2 does…
Is it unethical for a lawyer to file a bankruptcy adversary proceeding pro se to discharge their own student loans as an undue hardship?
Not per se. The committee concluded that a lawyer representing himself must still follow the Rules of Professional Conduct as if representing another, so it is not inherently unethical to file the…
Does RPC 1.10(a) impute a part-time or of-counsel lawyer's conflicts to a firm, even for clients that lawyer represents outside the firm?
Yes. The committee concluded that a part-time or of-counsel lawyer is 'associated' with the firm under RPC 1.10(a), so the firm cannot represent a client where that representation would conflict…
Can a Washington lawyer employed by one state agency open a private practice representing employees of other state agencies in civil actions against the state?
It depends on the facts. The committee concluded that, assuming the lawyer has no attorney-client relationship with his own agency, RPC 1.7(a)(2) could bar the outside representation if it would be…
Is paying a contract or temporary lawyer only for the hours the hiring lawyer bills to and collects from the client a 'division of fee' governed by RPC 1.5(e)?
No. The committee concluded that the arrangement does not implicate RPC 1.5(e), which applies to a division of fee between lawyers not in the same firm, because the gross fee the client pays the…
Can a personal injury lawyer pay a nonlawyer marketing and settlement employee a bonus based on a percentage of the settlements that person brings in or negotiates?
No. The committee concluded that compensating a nonlawyer based on a percentage of negotiated settlements is improper fee-splitting under RPC 5.4. The rule's profit-sharing exception (RPC 5.4(a)(3))…
Can a settlement agreement bar the plaintiff's lawyer from filing future unrelated suits against the same defendant on behalf of other, currently unidentified plaintiffs?
No. The committee concluded that such a clause violates RPC 5.6(b), which bars a lawyer from making an agreement that restricts the lawyer's right to practice as part of settling a client's…
Can a Washington lawyer join a commercial networking and referral organization without violating RPC 7.2 if the organization drops mandatory referral requirements and adds safeguards?
The committee concluded that if the organization adopts and enforces the described reforms, no mandatory member referrals, posted guidance against misleading claims and requiring a prospective…
Can a Washington sole practitioner call the firm a 'Law Group' when only one licensed lawyer practices there?
No. The committee concluded that using the word 'group' in a firm name where only one licensed attorney practices violates RPC 7.5(a) and (d) because it implies more than one lawyer practices in 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.