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 acting as a neutral mediator in a domestic dispute draft a document setting out the understanding the parties reached?
Yes. A lawyer serving as a neutral mediator may draft documents that memorialize the parties' understanding, provided the lawyer makes clear they represent neither party and gives unrepresented partie…
Can a lawyer who serves on a city council represent clients in that city's municipal court, in civil and in criminal cases?
The opinion concluded that a lawyer who is a city council member may represent civil clients in the municipal court if certain restrictions are heeded, but may not represent criminal defendants, priva…
I once prepared wills for the Mayor and his family, and the Mayor appoints the planning board. Can I now represent a client before the town's planning and zoning boards on permits and variances under Rule 1.9?
The Panel concluded the attorney may represent the current client before the town's planning and zoning boards because the permit and variance matters are not the same or substantially related to the …
I once represented a corporation in a claim, and my associate handled its collection cases years ago. Now a different former employee wants me to sue that corporation for age discrimination. Does Rule 1.9 permit it?
The Panel concluded the attorney may represent the former employee against the corporation because the prior collection matters are not the same or substantially related to the age discrimination case…
When a client becomes mentally incompetent during a representation, can the lawyer petition for a guardian or take other protective action, and may the lawyer recommend a guardian who will then hire the lawyer?
The opinion concluded that a lawyer who reasonably believed a client could no longer adequately act in the client's own interest could take protective action under Model Rule 1.14(b), including petiti…
When an insurance company hires a lawyer to defend its insured and the policy lets the insurer settle within limits in its sole discretion, can the lawyer settle the case if the insured objects?
The opinion concluded that, after disclosing the limited nature of the representation and the insurer's control of the defense, the lawyer may settle at the insurer's direction, but if the lawyer know…
Can a lawyer pay a fact witness (not an expert) for the time the witness spends attending a deposition or trial, or meeting with the lawyer to prepare to testify?
The opinion concluded that a lawyer may compensate a non-expert occurrence witness for the reasonable value of time lost in attending or preparing to testify, so long as the payment is not conditioned…
Can a lawyer represent both a landowner suing a federal agency and an agency employee who negotiated the disputed lease and will be the agency's witness?
No. The opinion concluded that representing both is improper under Rule 1.7 because the employee is a material witness against the landowner and her negotiating role is the subject of her own grievanc…
Must a lawyer always give a Rule 1.7 conflict warning and get a written waiver from every married couple who jointly hires the lawyer for estate planning?
No. The opinion concluded that marriage alone does not create a conflict, so no warning or waiver is required absent an actual or developing conflict; once a material potential for conflict appears, R…
In a non-adversarial Social Security disability hearing, must a claimant's lawyer disclose an adverse medical report, or may the lawyer withhold it?
The opinion concluded that, absent a law or court order requiring disclosure and so long as the lawyer is advancing the claim in good faith, the lawyer need not volunteer adverse medical evidence and …
When a lawyer jointly represented spouses on their wills, can the lawyer secretly draft a codicil for one spouse that reduces the other spouse's share?
Only in narrow circumstances. The lawyer may prepare the husband's codicil without telling the wife only if the couple had no clearly expressed agreement that neither would change the plan without inf…
Can a North Carolina lawyer personally agree to indemnify the defendant's insurer against unpaid medical liens as a condition of settling the client's case?
No. The opinion concluded that a lawyer may not sign an agreement personally indemnifying the tortfeasor's liability carrier against the client's outstanding medical liens as a condition of settlement…
Can a firm call a non-exclusive per diem lawyer an 'associate' or 'of counsel'?
Not 'associate'; 'of counsel' depends on the relationship. The opinion concluded a lawyer engaged on a non-exclusive, per diem basis cannot be called an 'associate,' and may be called 'of counsel' onl…
Can a Michigan lawyer advertise and solicit clients over the Internet, including through a website and email?
The opinion concluded that posting information online (where the user initiates contact) is treated like general advertising under MRPC 7.1, email to specific addressees is treated like direct mail un…
My client's fiancé paid and co-signed for her legal fee, but I told him he was not the client. The engagement ended and he wants the unused fee back, while my client says it was a gift. Do I owe the fiancé a refund?
The Panel concluded the attorney has no obligation to refund the unused fee to the fiancé, because the attorney's duty runs only to the client, not to the third-party payer; the unearned portion must …
May I list the names of my paralegals and legal assistants on my law office letterhead if I separate them from the lawyers' names?
The Panel concluded no: listing non-lawyers on law firm letterhead is misleading to the public because it can create a false impression of a partnership between lawyers and non-lawyers, so only the na…
In a divorce case I gave opposing counsel inaccurate advice about the legal consequences of assigning part of my client's profit-sharing plan to the wife. Now that I know it was wrong, what do I owe my client and opposing counsel?
The Panel concluded the attorney must keep the client informed of the mistake under Rule 1.4, and, out of respect for the legal system and fairness to fellow lawyers under the Preamble, should notify …
Opposing counsel told me he represents the opposing parties and that all communications must go through him. May I still contact the opposing parties' insurance carrier directly, or contact the parties themselves?
The Panel concluded no: under Rule 4.2 the attorney may not contact the opposing parties' insurance carrier directly, and may not contact the represented opposing parties, without the consent of oppos…
If I win a seat on the town council, may I still appear before the town's Probate and Municipal Courts and Planning and Zoning staff, and represent criminal clients in cases involving the town's police, during my term?
The Panel concluded no in either case: applying Rule 1.11's rationale by analogy to concurrent government service, the council member may not appear before the town's courts or Planning and Zoning sta…
Can a lawyer who owns a nonlaw ADR business provide those services to clients of opposing counsel, co-counsel, or the lawyer's own firm?
Not per se barred. The lawyer must check case by case whether the ADR-business interest materially limits the law representation, and for current clients of the lawyer, firm, or co-counsel must meet M…
What are a Utah lawyer's duties when the lawyer cannot communicate with a client in a language the client understands?
The lawyer need not personally speak the client's language but must communicate adequately, which the opinion said may require a skilled interpreter, with care taken so the interpreter does not give i…
Can a lawyer send the interest from a pooled client trust account (IOLTA) to a law-related charity of the lawyer's choice instead of the Utah Bar Foundation?
No. The Utah Supreme Court approved the IOLTA program only for remitting nominal trust-account interest to the Utah Bar Foundation, so a lawyer who directs that interest to a different charity would v…
Can a lawyer secretly record a phone call with a client, witness, or another lawyer without telling them it is being recorded?
Yes, in ordinary circumstances. Recording a conversation the lawyer is party to, without disclosure, is not unethical when, considered in context, it does not involve dishonesty, fraud, deceit, or mis…
I'm licensed out of state and practice only federal immigration law in Texas. Is the Texas bar's discipline a concern, and what is the risk for a Texas lawyer who employs me?
The Committee concluded the State Bar of Texas has no disciplinary jurisdiction under Rule 8.05(a) over an attorney not licensed or specially admitted in Texas; it assumed (without deciding the UPL qu…
Can I sign up with a for-profit contract-lawyer placement agency that places me with firms for short-term projects and takes a cut of the billing?
The Committee concluded a lawyer may use a contract-lawyer placement agency if the lawyer safeguards client confidences, the lawyer and firm comply with the conflict rules, the lawyer is supervised by…
In Kentucky, may a lawyer arrange with a charity to provide estate-planning services to donors, and may a charity pay or recommend the lawyer?
The opinion concluded a lawyer may not offer reduced or conditioned estate-planning services tied to a bequest, because that gives the charity something of value for recommending the lawyer, but may p…
In Kentucky, may a lawyer take a percentage of an investment advisor's recurring management fee for referring a client to that advisor, even with the client's consent?
No. The opinion concluded that a continuing referral fee tied to the client's assets under management creates a serious conflict that materially limits the lawyer's independent judgment, implicates th…
Can a party-nominated arbitrator who is a lawyer talk privately with the nominating party about the case and advocate that party's position during deliberations?
Yes. The ethics rules do not bar a party-nominated arbitrator from communicating with or advocating for the nominating party. But in court-mandated arbitration the lawyer must first check whether the …
If a new lawyer learns a client lied at the original trial, may the lawyer reveal that prior false testimony when seeking post-appeal relief?
Not without the client's consent, and not if the lawyer's services were used to further it. The lawyer may pursue post-appeal relief without revealing the prior false testimony only if those facts are…
If a client testified truthfully at deposition but the answer later turns out to be inaccurate, must the lawyer correct it or tell the other side?
No. Where the client's testimony was truthful when given and only later recalled as inaccurate, with no fraud and no materiality shown, the lawyer has no ethical duty to correct it or to disclose to t…
When a lawyer is being considered to sit on an arbitration panel, what disclosures do the ethics rules require about contacts with the parties, counsel, or witnesses?
The ethics rules require no disclosure to the arbitration participants. They require only that the lawyer inquire enough about the matter and participants to check whether serving would breach the law…
Must a lawyer get a court's permission to withdraw when the court's rules require it, and can the lawyer be forced to disclose the client's address to do so?
The opinion concluded that where a tribunal's rules require leave to withdraw, Rule 1.16(c) requires the lawyer to obtain that leave; merely telling the former client about an upcoming hearing and adv…
Can a lawyer set up a corporation to solicit clients for a non-lawyer tax-consulting firm that will then hire the lawyer for the legal work?
The opinion concluded that a lawyer may not use a corporation that is the lawyer's alter ego to solicit tax-consulting clients for a non-lawyer firm when that firm will employ the lawyer to provide th…
May a California lawyer enter into a contractual arrangement with a non-lawyer-controlled office management company that provides space, staff, bookkeeping, trust-account services, advertising, and other support in exchange for a percentage of the lawyer's fees?
The opinion concluded that the arrangement was permissible only if (1) compensation does not constitute fee splitting with the non-lawyer company, (2) the attorney does not abdicate control over the l…
When must a Colorado lawyer report another lawyer's ethics violation, and to whom must the report be made?
The opinion concluded that the duty to report under Rule 8.3(a) is triggered only by a lawyer's actual knowledge (which may be inferred from circumstances) of a violation that raises a substantial que…
Can an Ohio judge sign a written endorsement of a local domestic-violence response protocol for police, prosecutors, and judges?
The opinion concluded that a judge may consult on and participate in domestic-violence task forces, but it is not prudent under Canons 1, 2(A), 3(A)(1), and 7(B)(2)(c), (d), (e) for a judge to make a …
Can an Ohio criminal-defense lawyer charge a flat fee paid in advance, deposit it in the business account, and call it nonrefundable?
The opinion concluded that a lawyer may charge a criminal defendant a flat fee in advance; by agreement it may be deposited in the business account on receipt, but it must not be excessive, the client…
Can a Tennessee lawyer appointed to represent a minor seeking judicial bypass of parental consent for an abortion decline the appointment on moral, religious, or malpractice-insurance grounds?
Formal Ethics Opinion 96-F-140 addressed the duties of counsel appointed to represent a minor petitioning for judicial bypass of the parental-consent requirement for an abortion. It concluded that cou…
I once handled a divorce for someone, with no contact since. Now that former client is suing my current client, a furniture company, over defective goods. Does Rule 1.9 let me defend the furniture company?
The Panel concluded the attorney may represent the current client because the former client's domestic relations matter is not the same or substantially related to the defective-goods lawsuit, subject…
My firm represents a union, and my father is a city supervisor who sits on a trial board that decides disciplinary complaints against union members. Can we represent union members in that city despite my father's role?
The Panel concluded, applying Rule 1.8(i) by analogy, that the attorney may represent the union in all matters except those in which the father is or may be involved, and cautioned the firm to avoid e…
A clerical error at the Supreme Court means my opponent's appeal is not on record, which helps my client. May I tell my client, and must I alert the tribunal or opposing counsel to the mistake?
The Panel concluded the attorney may inform the client of the appeals status under the Rule 1.4 duty to keep the client informed, and, invoking the Preamble's principle of respect for the legal system…
Can a lawyer accept a referral fee from an investment advisor for sending the lawyer's clients to the advisor?
The opinion concluded that a lawyer may not accept a referral fee from an investment advisor, because the conflict is non-consentable: the fee turns on how much of the client's money is entrusted to t…
Does a lawyer serving as an arbitrator have an ethics-rule duty to disclose present or former relationships with the parties or others?
No. The Michigan Rules of Professional Conduct impose no disclosure duty on a lawyer acting as arbitrator; any such duty arises from the arbitration contract, the AAA code, or other applicable law, an…
Can a lawyer place an ad in a lawful publication that also carries prostitution-related or other sexually related material?
Yes. The opinion concluded that an otherwise Code-compliant advertisement is not rendered improper solely because it appears in a lawfully published periodical containing 'prostitution related' advert…
Must a New York LLP law firm state on its letterhead that some of its partners are professional corporations?
No, in New York. The opinion concluded a New York limited liability partnership need not indicate on its letterhead that some partners are themselves professional corporations, because no member of an…
Can a lawyer charge a forfeitable initiation retainer and advertise a fee discount without stating the standard fee?
No to both. The opinion concluded a lawyer may not charge an initiation/retainer fee that is forfeited entirely if the client terminates, and may not advertise that some clients get a discount from 's…
When a government child-support attorney represents the agency, can the same attorney handle a later case adverse to a parent the agency once helped, and what must the attorney disclose to service recipients?
The opinion concluded that, because a state statute makes the agency the IV-D attorney's exclusive client with no attorney-client relationship to any service recipient, the attorney may handle later a…
At my old firm I represented a client in salvage claims. My new firm wants me to defend insurance companies against that same client in unrelated matters. Does Rule 1.9 permit it, and can the client disqualify me?
The Panel concluded the attorney may represent the defense insurance companies against the former client in matters not related to the former salvage representation, subject to the continuing duty und…
I represent several co-defendants, and one privately told me she violated a court order by taking the disputed funds (then replaced them on my advice). Must I disclose that under Rule 1.6, and does it create a conflict under Rule 1.7?
The Panel concluded the attorney may not disclose the co-defendant's admission because it is protected by Rule 1.6, and that if the attorney comes to believe a conflict has arisen among the co-defenda…
On an hourly fee, can a lawyer bill more than one client for the same block of time, such as travel time, a shared court appearance, or recycled work product?
The opinion concluded it is not appropriate to bill more than one client for the same hours under an hourly fee arrangement; the lawyer may bill only for actual time spent, and efficiencies must benef…
Can a lawyer who served as a mediator between parties later serve as the arbitrator deciding the same matter between them?
A lawyer who mediated under MCR 2.403 may not later arbitrate the same matter between the same parties. In a private mediation, whether the lawyer may later arbitrate depends on the rules of the media…
Can a lawyer act as advocate in an arbitration while also being a necessary witness about a contested fact?
It is not per se unethical. The advocate-witness rule (MRPC 3.7) does not literally cover arbitration, but the lawyer should be guided by the witness rules that apply at trial, with MRPC 8.4(c) requir…
Can a lawyer who runs a nonlaw ADR business require participants to release the arbitrators and mediators from all liability arising from the proceeding?
Yes. A lawyer may establish a nonlaw ADR business and, as a condition of using it, require participants to release the presiding officials and staff from liability, because no lawyer-client relationsh…
Does a lawyer have to tell the client about alternatives to litigation, such as settlement or ADR?
Yes. A lawyer must recommend an alternative to litigation when it is a reasonable course to further the client's interests, or when the lawyer has any reason to think the client would find it desirabl…
Can a criminal appellate lawyer who believes a client is dangerous write the parole board with the lawyer's own observations about the client?
No. Observations and impressions formed while representing a client are protected 'secrets' that may not be disclosed to third parties unless an exception in MRPC 1.6(c) applies, and none did here.
If a lawyer agreed to pay a personal-injury client's medical providers out of a settlement, and the client then discharges those debts in bankruptcy, must the lawyer pay the providers personally?
No. Absent dishonesty, fraud, deceit, or misrepresentation, the lawyer has no ethical obligation to personally honor the client's agreement to pay medical providers from a settlement or judgment; the …
How long must a Utah lawyer keep a client's file after the representation ends?
There is no fixed retention period. The opinion concluded a lawyer must return the portions of the file that are the client's property and keep the rest as long as needed to protect the client's fores…
Can a defendant's lawyer contact former plaintiffs who already settled their claims, to investigate their old lawyers, without going through plaintiffs' counsel?
Yes, but only if the settling plaintiffs are no longer represented by counsel and only after the lawyer makes appropriate disclosures; under Rule 4.2 the lawyer must confirm the prior representation h…
Can a West Virginia lawyer advertise 'No Recovery-No Fee' without saying the client may still owe litigation costs and expenses?
No. The opinion concluded that 'No Recovery-No Fee' and similar contingent-fee advertising is inherently misleading and violates Rule 7.1 unless the same advertisement also discloses that the client i…
Can a lawyer take opposing positions on a legal issue for different clients in unrelated matters at the same time?
The opinion concluded that a lawyer may not, without the informed consent of all affected clients, simultaneously represent clients whose positions on a matter of law conflict where there is a substan…
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.