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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What must a lawyer do after receiving a document the other side sent by mistake?
Just notify the sender. The opinion concludes that under amended Rule 4.4(b) a lawyer who receives an inadvertently sent document need only promptly notify the sender, and need not refrain from…
Can a lawyer contact a represented company's in-house counsel about the matter without the company's outside counsel's consent?
The opinion concludes that, in general, a lawyer may communicate with the in-house counsel of a represented entity about the subject of the representation without obtaining the prior consent of the…
Can a Virginia lawyer keep a client's file in electronic-only form, destroy the paper originals with the client's consent, and require electronic-only files as a condition of representation?
Generally yes. The opinion concludes the Rules do not dictate the form of a client file, so a lawyer may keep electronic-only files, destroy paper with the client's consent, and even condition…
What ethics rules apply when a Louisiana lawyer volunteers on a disaster legal-advice hotline?
The lawyer may provide competent short-term services through a nonprofit or court program and may advise represented people when unaffiliated with their matter, but may not use disaster relief as…
May a judge direct a nonprofit formed to raise money for drug court participants?
Yes, if the judge’s role avoids both active and passive fundraising. The opinion permits board service while barring personal solicitation, fundraising appearances, use of judicial prestige, and…
I drafted a will and trust for a now-deceased client and represent the trustee. The trust now needs a second co-trustee, a longtime friend I've also represented personally on unrelated matters and who belongs to my church, which may benefit from the trust. Both want me to continue as counsel. Can I, and does my proposed disclosure letter cover the ethics requirements?
Yes to both. The panel held there is no Rule 1.9 conflict representing the second trustee because the prior personal representations are not substantially related to the trust and foundation…
I want to represent veterans before the Court of Veterans Claims. My brother-in-law is a supervising attorney on the opposing federal agency's litigation team (though he's promised my cases won't go to his team), and my sister is a staff attorney at the board whose decisions get appealed to that court. Do these family ties create a conflict?
The brother-in-law relationship isn't covered by Rule 1.8(i), which lists only parent, child, sibling, or spouse, so representation is permitted given the assurances his team won't handle the cases.…
Could a new Maine judge wait until year-end to calculate his share of former-firm income?
No. The committee rejected deferring the calculation until year-end; it said the amount due for pre-bench work should be fixed when the judge took office, and the judge must recuse from matters…
Can a lawyer whose firm represents a city in civil matters also defend criminal clients in that city's municipal court, and can the resulting conflict be waived?
The conflict between representing the city and defending criminal clients prosecuted by the city is a direct, materially limiting conflict, and the opinion calls waiver highly questionable, but it…
Is a lawyer who works as a lobbyist rather than practicing law still bound by the Rules of Professional Conduct, and can he later lobby against a former lobbying customer on the same issue?
The opinion concludes a lawyer remains subject to the Rules even while working as a lobbyist, and if his conduct led the customer to a reasonable belief that an attorney-client relationship existed,…
May a judge and a lawyer appearing before the judge join the same nonprofit fishing club?
West Virginia JIC Opinion 2005-18 permits the judge to join the described nonprofit fishing club and says the lawyer and firm may continue appearing before the judge on the stated no-benefit,…
What are a lawyer's ethical duties to clients when leaving one firm for another?
The departing lawyer and the former firm must protect clients' interests, give timely notice to clients on the lawyer's active matters, and safeguard client files and property. The client chooses…
Is a judge disqualified from capital murder cases after briefly standing in for a law partner who represented a victim-witness in unrelated matters?
No on the stated facts. The Commission found the judge’s brief, limited assistance in unrelated matters did not reasonably call his impartiality into question.
Does a lawyer owe confidentiality to someone interviewed as a prospective client who is never retained, and can that interview disqualify the lawyer's firm?
Yes. The opinion concludes confidentiality usually attaches when a prospective client consults a lawyer in contemplation of retention, even if the lawyer is never retained and gives no advice; Rules…
Can a lawyer collect names of potential clients from seminar attendees and then contact those people to solicit business?
Handing out a form at a seminar that asks attendees to name people who might want the lawyer's services is not itself improper, but using those names to make in-person, telephone, or other real-time…
Can a West Virginia lawyer refer a personal-injury client to a litigation-funding company that advances cash against the client's expected recovery, or release the client's case information to it?
Only with care, and never for the lawyer's benefit. The opinion concludes a lawyer may not refer a client to a funding plan the lawyer (or the firm or family) owns or that pays the lawyer for…
May a judge teach a paid evening evidence course outside court hours?
The committee permitted the described teaching if it did not use court time or resources or impair judicial duties. It said compensation must be reasonable, comparable to a nonjudge's pay for the…
May a magistrate’s brother conduct bonding business in the magistrate’s court?
West Virginia JIC Opinion 2005-17 says the magistrate should not permit the brother to conduct bonding business in that court, despite the magistrate’s neutral list of agents and lack of financial benefit.
May a judge speaking at a CLE accept lodging and complimentary football tickets?
West Virginia JIC Opinion 2005-14 permits the judge to accept the offered overnight accommodations and football tickets as part of the described invitation to speak at a law-related CLE.
May a judicial system minority and justice committee receive funds designated by the state bar’s charitable fund?
Nebraska Judicial Ethics Opinion 05-4 allowed the court committee to accept the designated charitable funds where it had not solicited them and no judge or court employee would be paid.
When a lawyer's own error causes a client's criminal appeal to be dismissed, what must the lawyer do to help the client, and does the lawyer's own exposure create a disqualifying conflict?
The opinion concludes the lawyer must under Rule 1.4 tell the client the appeal was dismissed, why, and what recourse exists (including habeas for ineffective assistance and a possible malpractice…
Must a criminal defense lawyer obey a competent-but-suicidal capital client who orders the lawyer to present no defense at the guilt or penalty phase of the trial?
The opinion concludes whether to present a defense is generally an objective for the client under Rule 1.2, but because this lawyer reasonably believes the suicidal client's decision-making is…
Can a California lawyer agree to cap a client's hourly-rate obligation and refund any excess statutory attorney's fees awarded under CCP section 1021.5 to the client without violating the fee-sharing prohibition?
Yes. The opinion concludes that refunding excess statutory fee awards to a client is a refund of an overpayment, not a sharing of an earned fee, and therefore does not violate former California Rule…
Do California lawyers participating on a bar-association listserv that also includes judges risk improper ex parte contacts, and what should they avoid posting?
Inadvertent contact with a judge through a listserv post likely does not violate former Rule 5-300, but the opinion concludes lawyers must not include information identifiable to a particular case…
Must a Michigan judge married to an assistant prosecutor recuse on a defendant's request even when the spouse had no involvement in the case?
Yes. The judge must disclose the marital relationship whenever the prosecutor's office appears and is recused unless the parties voluntarily ask the judge to proceed; the parties may require…
In New Jersey, can a lawyer (or the lawyer's partners) who represents a municipal board or agency also represent private clients in that municipality's court or before its other agencies?
No. The Committee holds that a lawyer who represents a municipal body subject to the municipality's budgetary, membership, or decision-making control has the entire municipality as a client, so the…
Can a retired judge who practices law also serve as a private judge under R.C. 2701.10?
The opinion concluded that, absent an express ethical or statutory restriction, a retired judge who practices law may also serve as a private judge under R.C. 2701.10, but to avoid an appearance of…
Can lawyers run booths or programs offering free help with advance directive forms to the public?
The opinion concluded that attorneys may volunteer in a bar-association-sponsored program providing public education and pro bono legal services on advance directive forms; whether individual…
Can a lawyer appear on a TV program called 'Ask the Expert'?
The opinion concluded that a lawyer should not participate in a television station's advertising and public-service program titled 'Ask the Expert,' because lawyers may not hold themselves out as…
If opposing counsel in a divorce claims my firm once represented the other spouse, must I withdraw when no clear attorney-client relationship with that spouse was ever formed?
The committee held that, because it does not act as a fact finder and was given no facts showing the other spouse had ever formed an attorney-client relationship with the firm (no express agreement,…
Can a Texas lawyer pay a fee to be listed on a private for-profit website that collects potential clients' information and forwards it to listed lawyers?
No. The Committee concludes the service solicits or refers prospective clients rather than providing advertising, so paying its fee violates Rule 7.03(b)'s bar on paying a non-lawyer for soliciting…
Can my law firm lease its lawyers and staff from an employee leasing company that also leases personnel to other firms whose clients may be adverse?
Yes, with conditions. The Committee concludes a firm may use an employee leasing company for limited payroll and benefits services so long as the firm keeps exclusive control over hiring and…
Can a lawyer accept a flat fee per case from an insurer to defend its insureds, and what duties does the lawyer still owe the insureds?
Yes: a flat fee per case is not clearly excessive so long as the agreement as a whole is reasonable, but the flat fee does not reduce the lawyer's duties of competence, diligence, and independent…
Can a lawyer charge clients 18 percent annual interest on past-due bills, what rate applies without an interest agreement, and can the lawyer add the interest charge just by noting it on a bill?
An 18 percent charge is permissible if the client expressly agrees and the agreement as a whole is not clearly excessive; absent an enforceable agreement the rate is capped at 9 percent under ORS…
Can a lawyer draft a parent's will that leaves the lawyer a substantial gift, and can a lawyer act as counsel for (or serve as) the personal representative of a parent's estate when the lawyer is also a beneficiary?
Qualified yes to both: RPC 1.8(c) lets a lawyer prepare an instrument giving the lawyer a substantial gift where the lawyer is related to the client, so a child-lawyer may draft a parent's will; and…
Can a lawyer help a client deliberately breach a contract or minimize the damages that will flow from the breach?
Qualified yes: a lawyer may assist a client in breaching a contract and in minimizing the resulting liability, so long as the lawyer does not help the client defraud anyone (RPC 8.4) and does not…
After a lawyer is discharged or withdraws for unpaid fees, can the lawyer hold the client's case file and documents until the past-due fees are paid?
Yes, but qualified: an attorney's possessory lien under ORS 87.430 lets the lawyer withhold the file when the client can pay or post a bond but will not, yet the lien must yield to the lawyer's…
Can a lawyer refer clients to, accept referrals from, or do legal work for a nonlawyer estate-planning firm that is itself practicing law unlawfully?
The opinion concludes no to all three: because the estate-planning service's activities constitute the unlawful practice of law, RPC 5.5(a) bars the lawyer from assisting it by referring clients to…
When a lawyer represents a corporation or partnership with two unrelated owners, does that automatically make the owners the lawyer's clients, or vice versa?
The opinion concludes representing an entity does not by itself make its shareholders or partners the lawyer's clients, and representing one owner does not by itself make the entity a client, unless…
Can a lawyer whose client is not a party to an OLCC license hearing send a letter to the hearing officer urging cancellation of the license, and does copying the other parties change the answer?
The opinion concludes the lawyer may not send the letter ex parte, because not being a party is no exception to RPC 3.5(b); the lawyer may send it only if it is relevant and admissible, complies…
Can a lawyer communicate ex parte with an administrative law judge during a contested-case hearing, and does an Attorney General's office lawyer have more latitude to do so?
The opinion concludes RPC 3.5(b) appears to apply to administrative law judges as it does to court judges, so private-party ex parte contact on the merits is barred unless authorized by law; the…
Can a lawyer try a case when the lawyer or a partner will testify, and does it matter if the testimony helps or hurts the client?
It depends. The opinion concludes a lawyer generally may not try a case in which the lawyer will testify for the client unless an RPC 3.7(a) exception applies, a partner may try the case if the…
When a client protests a bill, can the lawyer respond by submitting a higher bill for the same work, or charge the client for the time spent fighting over the fee?
The opinion concludes no: raising the fee to retaliate for a fee protest makes the revised fee clearly excessive under RPC 1.5(a), and the lawyer also may not charge the client for time spent…
Can a lawyer who learned a birth mother's identity while handling an adoption later disclose that information to the adoptive parents when they ask for it?
The opinion concludes the lawyer's fiduciary duty appears to require disclosing the information on request if it is in the lawyer's file, was not obtained in violation of law, and disclosing it…
Can a lawyer enter into a private financial deal with a judge, such as leasing the lawyer's airplane to the judge or buying a vacation home together?
The opinion concludes it depends: a deal that amounts to a gift or favor to a judge whose docket the lawyer's interests may reach can violate the judicial gift rules and RPC 8.4, while an…
When a court awards attorney fees that exceed what the lawyer is owed under the fee agreement with the client, who gets the difference, the lawyer or the client?
The opinion concludes the client gets the excess; collecting more than the agreed fee would be a clearly excessive fee under RPC 1.5(a), and paying the surplus to the client does not violate the…
Can a county counsel who advises county employees on county business also negotiate the county's collective-bargaining agreement against those same employees?
The opinion concludes county counsel may negotiate the collective-bargaining agreement because the county is the lawyer's only client; advising employees on county business does not make them…
Can a lawyer give a newspaper an opinion about whether a sitting judge is competent, even if the lawyer has never appeared before that judge?
The opinion concludes a lawyer may publicly comment on a judge's competence, including to the press during a reelection campaign, as long as the lawyer does not knowingly or recklessly make false…
Can the lawyer for a resigned estate personal representative also represent the successor, including against the first one's fee claim?
The opinion concludes the lawyer may represent the successor personal representative absent a conflict and may keep representing the original one, but may not represent the successor in opposing the…
After a lawyer misses a filing deadline, can the lawyer settle the malpractice exposure with the client and keep handling the client's other claim?
Yes to both, qualified. The opinion concludes a lawyer may settle a potential malpractice claim with the client only after advising the client in writing to seek independent counsel, and may keep…
When a lawyer leaves a firm, must the firm turn over original wills and client property the departing lawyer requests?
The opinion concludes the firm may hold original wills and client property until the clients themselves direct where it should go, but once a client so directs, the firm must promptly send the…
When can a lawyer add a corporation's officers, employees, or shareholders as defendants alongside the corporation?
The opinion concludes a lawyer may join individuals only where a reasonable investigation shows a nonfrivolous basis for their liability; joining them with no reasonable basis violates the rules…
In a state support-enforcement case, is the custodial parent the lawyer's client whose instructions the lawyer must follow?
No, qualified. The opinion concludes that in support-enforcement proceedings the client is the State of Oregon, not either parent, so the government lawyer owes the former wife no client-type duty…
Can lawyers chip in to a gift fund for a judge, such as a vacation fund for a part-time pro tem judge?
Yes, qualified. The opinion concludes lawyers may solicit and contribute to a judge's gift fund if they are not trying to influence the judge and do not know the judge's acceptance would violate the…
Can a contingent-fee agreement switch the client to an hourly fee if the client turns down a settlement the lawyer thinks is reasonable?
Yes, qualified. The opinion concludes such a clause is not automatically improper, but it can violate the rules if it unduly pressures the client's decision whether to settle or makes the fee…
Can a lawyer represent a client who was wrongly ticketed in place of another person but refuses to tell the court the truth?
No. The opinion concludes a lawyer who learns the client intends to continue a deception on the court must call on the client to tell the truth, and if the client refuses, the lawyer may not…
When a client tells a lawyer to pay out settlement funds to the client instead of known creditors, what must the lawyer do?
The opinion holds the lawyer may not pay the client funds subject to a valid lien or security interest (those go to the secured creditor), may hold or implead funds whose ownership is genuinely…
Can a lawyer who is a notary take a notarial acknowledgment over the phone, or have a secretary notarize a signature the notary did not witness?
No. The opinion concludes that certifying a notarial acknowledgment for someone who did not personally appear, whether by phone or through a secretary, is dishonest conduct that violates Oregon RPC…
Can an Oregon lawyer agree to represent an indigent client at little or no fee, with the client obligated to pay if their finances improve?
Yes, qualified. The opinion concludes such an agreement does not violate RPC 1.5(a)'s bar on clearly excessive fees, but it would be unethical if the expected change in finances comes from a matter…
When an Oregon lawyer retires or dies, can the lawyer (or the lawyer winding up the practice) discard original wills whose former clients cannot be located?
No, qualified. The opinion concludes original wills are client property the lawyer must preserve, or have preserved by competent successor counsel, under RPC 1.15-1; statute (ORS 112.815 and…
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.