District of Columbia Bar Ethics Opinions
Free plain-English summaries of legal ethics opinions issued by the District of Columbia Bar, with full citations and source links on every page.
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After a D.C. lawyer is fired in a contingent-fee case, can the lawyer tell successor counsel about a charging lien without breaching client confidentiality?
The opinion concludes that a lawyer whose fee is secured by a charging lien on the client's future recovery may notify successor counsel or another likely holder of the funds that the lien exists, and…
Can a D.C. lawyer accept cryptocurrency, like Bitcoin, as payment for legal fees or in settlement of a client's claim?
The opinion concludes there is no per se bar to a D.C. lawyer accepting cryptocurrency, provided the fee is reasonable under Rule 1.5. When the lawyer takes cryptocurrency as an advance fee or calcula…
Can a D.C. lawyer accept money raised through crowdfunding to pay for a client's legal fees, and what changes if the lawyer runs the campaign?
The opinion concludes that lawyers may generally represent clients whose fees are crowdfunded. When the client runs the crowdfunding and the lawyer is merely aware of it, the lawyer takes on no specia…
After a consultation that does not lead to representation, does a D.C. lawyer have to keep or hand over the notes, research, and information from the prospective client meeting?
The opinion concludes that a D.C. lawyer must protect a prospective client's confidences and secrets under Rules 1.18 and 1.6, and must safeguard and return any property the prospective client entrust…
What can a D.C. lawyer do with money sitting in a client trust account when the client cannot be located?
The opinion concludes that after reasonable but unsuccessful efforts to locate a missing client, a lawyer should presume the client's trust account monies abandoned and, where the D.C. Unclaimed Prope…
If a lawyer keeps a former client's files only in electronic form, must the lawyer provide paper copies on request, and who pays for the conversion?
The opinion concludes that there is no ethical prohibition on maintaining client records solely in electronic form (subject to some document-specific restrictions), and that lawyers and clients may ma…
When representation ends, does a D.C. lawyer have to hand over the entire client file, including internal notes and strategy memos?
The opinion concludes that, upon termination, a lawyer must surrender to the client (or the client's successor in interest) the entire file of papers and property to which the client is entitled, incl…
If a lawyer receives an opposing party's privileged document that a third party may have stolen or taken without authorization, may the lawyer review and use it?
The opinion concludes that a lawyer who receives a document whose privileged status is apparent on its face, who knows it came from someone not authorized to disclose it, and who has no reasonable bas…
When a third party claims part of a client's settlement funds the lawyer is holding, must the lawyer hold the money or pay it to the client?
The opinion concluded that under Rule 1.15 a client's mere assertion of a claim freezes disputed funds, but a third party's claim freezes funds only if it is a 'just claim' that applicable law obligat…
How long must a lawyer keep a former client's closed files, when may the files be destroyed, and may the client be charged for delivery or storage?
The opinion concluded that valuable client property must be delivered promptly or safeguarded indefinitely; other client property is governed by Rule 1.16(d), so the lawyer must notify the former clie…
What must a lawyer do with privileged documents an opponent produced by mistake, and is the disclosing lawyer in trouble?
The opinion concluded that a lawyer who receives privileged documents bearing no sign of confidentiality and reads them in good faith before learning of the mistake commits no ethics violation in keep…
Must a lawyer pay settlement money to the client when a third party, like a government Medicaid lienholder, also claims part of it?
The opinion concluded that when both the client and a third person claim an interest in settlement proceeds held in the lawyer's IOLTA account, the lawyer must not disburse the disputed portion to the…
What does a lawyer do with documents a client hands over that may actually belong to the client's former employer?
The opinion concluded that a lawyer should return documents to the client, on request, where the client has a plausible claim to own them. For documents the client has no claim to, the lawyer should r…
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Legal ethics opinions from the District of Columbia Bar interpret the rules of professional conduct for working lawyers, in response to inquiries from members and committees. They are not binding like court discipline decisions, but courts and discipline boards treat formal opinions as substantial guidance on how the rules apply. Every opinion above has a plain-English question and short answer, plus a link to the original source on the bar's site.