Los Angeles County Bar Association Ethics Opinions
Free plain-English summaries of legal ethics opinions issued by the Los Angeles County Bar Association, with full citations and source links on every page.
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When does a California lawyer need informed written consent to jointly represent two or more clients in the same matter?
The opinion concludes that informed written consent under Rule 1.7(b) is generally required to jointly represent multiple clients, because joint representations normally carry a significant risk the l…
When a former employee of the opposing party offers a California lawyer access to electronic data that supposedly shows the opposing party withheld responsive documents in discovery, what must the lawyer do before taking it?
Per the opinion, the lawyer must first assess whether the data was lawfully obtained and whether reviewing it would assist in a crime; must analogize to Rule 4.4's inadvertent-production rule if privi…
What confidentiality and competence duties apply when a California lawyer discusses a client matter on social media, including blogs and online discussion boards?
A lawyer must take reasonable steps to avoid revealing client information through online posts, even when the client is unnamed; aggregated posts plus pretexting may identify the client and waive work…
May insurance-retained defense counsel disclose to the carrier evidence the counsel obtained from a third party that could let the carrier deny coverage to the insured?
No. Defense counsel cannot disclose coverage-defeating information to the carrier even when learned from a third party; the irreconcilable tripartite conflict requires mandatory withdrawal.
How may a California lawyer publicly respond to a former client's online review accusing the lawyer of incompetence or overcharging, when no confidential information has been disclosed and no litigation is pending?
The lawyer may publicly respond if the rebuttal discloses no confidential information, does not injure the former client in matters relating to the prior representation, and is proportionate and restr…
What must a California firm do before and after hiring a nonlawyer employee (law clerk, secretary, investigator) who may have been exposed to confidential information about an adverse party at a prior employer?
The hiring firm must reasonably investigate prior exposure without probing the substance, instruct the new employee on confidentiality, and timely screen the employee from any matter where the employe…
Must a California lawyer inform the adverse party of a settlement overpayment the lawyer's client received, and if the client refuses, may the lawyer continue the representation?
The lawyer must tell the client about the overpayment and counsel disclosure, but cannot disclose to the adverse party over the client's confidentiality instruction; the lawyer must consider whether c…
May a California attorney sued by a third party disclose otherwise confidential or privileged client information in order to defend against the claim?
No. California has no statutory self-defense exception to Bus. & Prof. Code section 6068(e) or to the attorney-client privilege; disclosure requires the client's informed consent, although a court may…
Can a California lawyer hire an out-of-state legal research and brief-writing company to draft a brief, and what does the lawyer have to do to comply with the ethics rules?
The committee concluded that an attorney charging an hourly rate in a civil case may contract with an out-of-state company to draft a brief, provided the attorney is competent to review the work, rema…
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 or …
What ethical duties apply when a California lawyer learns that a former client has been designated as an opposing party's expert witness in a current case?
Whether the lawyer can take or continue the representation depends on whether the lawyer holds confidential information from the former client that is material to the new matter. The opinion concludes…
May a California lawyer agree to a settlement provision that bars the lawyer from disclosing the fact and amount of the settlement to the lawyer's other current or future clients?
Yes. The opinion concludes that a confidentiality clause limited to the fact and amount of the settlement does not violate former Rule 1-500(A) because it restricts disclosure of settlement terms, not…
When a former client asks for the return of mental-health records the lawyer obtained during the representation, can the lawyer refuse on the basis that disclosure would be detrimental to the client or others?
No. Per the opinion, former Rule 3-700(D)(1) requires the lawyer to promptly release client papers and property at the former client's request, subject only to applicable protective orders, and the la…
When a California lawyer learns material information during an unsuccessful initial consultation with a prospective client that would be useful to an existing client in an unrelated matter, must the lawyer disclose it to the existing client?
Per the opinion, no. The lawyer owes the prospective client a duty to preserve the confidentiality of information disclosed in an initial consultation, even when no engagement results. The lawyer's du…
May a California lawyer use an initial engagement agreement that waives the lawyer's fee if the client agrees not to accept any settlement confidentiality clause, but provides for the lawyer's full reasonable fee if the client does accept one?
Yes. Per the opinion, the arrangement does not unlawfully restrain settlement because the client retains the right to settle on any terms and, if a confidentiality clause is accepted, owes only the re…
When a California court-appointed dependency lawyer is told in confidence by a minor client that the minor is being sexually abused at the placement and the client instructs the lawyer not to disclose, may the lawyer override that instruction in the minor's best interests?
Per the opinion, no, when the lawyer reasonably believes the minor is competent to make an informed decision. The lawyer must honor a competent client's confidentiality instruction even when the lawye…
When a California lawyer moves from one law firm to another, which conflicts of interest from the former firm travel with the lawyer, and when are those conflicts imputed to the new firm?
Per the opinion, the moved lawyer is barred under Rule 3-310(E) only if the lawyer holds confidential information from the former firm's client material to the new representation. The lawyer's actual-…
May a California lawyer set up a business that finances another person's lawsuit in exchange for a partial assignment of the proceeds, where the claimant retains independent counsel?
Per the opinion, yes, on stated conditions: the claimant brings the lawsuit, is represented by independent counsel of the claimant's choice, the financier does not interfere with the lawyer, and the f…
After withdrawing to avoid using a client's falsified medical billings, may a California lawyer disclose the misrepresentation as the reason for withdrawal in a later fee dispute with the former client?
Per the opinion, only if the misrepresentation is relevant to the dispute and reasonably necessary because of an issue the client has raised. Disclosure should be made in a way that minimizes confiden…
What are a California lawyer's ethical limits on objecting during a client's deposition and on consulting privately with the client during the deposition or its breaks?
Per the opinion, the lawyer must protect the client's interests by asserting appropriate objections and may consult with the client during and between deposition sessions, including interrupting a pen…
When a California lawyer's joint representation of co-clients ends and the co-clients dispute who gets the original client files, how should the lawyer handle the files?
The opinion concluded that under former Rule 3-700(D)(1), a lawyer must promptly transfer files at the request of the former client. In a joint-representation dispute, the lawyer cannot favor one clie…
May a California law firm destroy office files of a deceased client when there is no preexisting agreement or statute governing disposition, and is notice to the legal representatives or residuary legatees required?
The opinion concluded that before destroying a deceased client's office files where no preexisting agreement or statute applies, the law firm must give or attempt to give notice to legal representativ…
May a California attorney who also holds a partnership interest in a medical clinic refer personal-injury clients to that clinic for treatment, and what disclosures are required?
The opinion concluded that while there is no per se prohibition on a lawyer practicing both law and medicine, referring law clients to the lawyer's own medical clinic is a business transaction trigger…
When a California law firm dissolves and holds closed-matter files for years-old former-client matters with no agreement governing disposition, must the firm attempt to notify former clients before destroying the files, and what minimum retention period applies?
The opinion concluded that the dissolved firm must use all reasonable means to contact former clients about retrieving their files. After diligent notice with sufficient time elapsed, the firm may des…
If a criminal defense lawyer becomes reasonably certain that the specific cash a client paid as a fee is the actual bills used in the crime, must the lawyer turn that cash over to law enforcement?
The committee concluded that an attorney who believes with reasonable certainty that specific cash received as a fee is the actual money used in the crime must turn that cash over to law enforcement o…
When an attorney files a labor-certification permanent-resident visa application for an undocumented worker, requiring representation of both the worker and the employer, what consent and confidentiality duties apply when the later visa petition must disclose the unlawful employment?
The committee concluded that mutual informed written consent of both the alien and the employer is required before the attorney undertakes the representation, because a later step requires disclosing …
When a current client is about to borrow from the lawyer's former client, can the lawyer disclose the former client's prior securities fraud, and whose consent does the lawyer need to represent the current client?
The committee concluded that the lawyer may not disclose the former client's securities fraud unless the former client consents; that the fraud will usually be material so as to require the former cli…
Can a lawyer hand over detailed billing statements to a third party that agreed to indemnify the client's fees under a non-insurance contract, without the client's consent?
The committee concluded that, without the client's informed consent, a lawyer may not voluntarily disclose to a non-insurance indemnitor the information in the lawyer's bills about the specific work p…
Can a lawyer who is owed fees by a former client now in bankruptcy use what the lawyer learned about the client's affairs to help the trustee or creditors locate assets, while also pursuing the lawyer's own fee claim?
The committee concluded that former counsel may file a fee claim in the bankruptcy and an adversary proceeding to have the debt declared nondischargeable, using confidences only as necessary and with …
Can a lawyer petition to have a conservator appointed over a present or former client's property when the client opposes it, if the lawyer believes a conservatorship is in the client's best interest?
The committee concluded that it is improper for an attorney to bring an action for appointment of a conservator over a present or former client, within the scope of the representation, even where the …
If a lawyer learns that a client is receiving oil royalties the client may not be entitled to, can the lawyer disclose that to the buyers or the oil company, and what should the lawyer do?
The committee concluded that the attorney may not disclose confidential information learned through the attorney-client relationship, absent client consent, even where the client intends to keep recei…
If a lawyer learns that a former client may have committed perjury in an ongoing civil case, must the lawyer report it, and what should the client's current lawyer do?
The committee concluded that a lawyer who learns a former client may have committed perjury in a continuing case need not call on the client to rectify it and may not disclose it to the client's prese…
Can a legal aid staff attorney give the organization's board of directors a client's confidential financial-eligibility information without the client's consent?
The committee concluded that a legal aid attorney may not disclose a client's confidential financial information regarding eligibility to the foundation's board of directors without the client's conse…
What must a lawyer do who is asked to document a corporate merger involving an illegal unregistered securities issuance, when the lawyer is also an officer and house counsel of an affiliated company?
The committee concluded that it is improper for the attorney to continue representing the client in the illegal securities transaction; the attorney should try to persuade the officers that the action…
If a lawyer learns that his client (an estate administrator who is also a lawyer) diverted estate assets, may he disclose it to the court, heirs, or a successor attorney, and what must he do with the file when he withdraws?
The committee concluded the lawyer may not disclose the client's diversion of assets to anyone, including the court or a new attorney, without the client's consent; he need not state the reason for wi…
When a guardian tells her lawyer she has misused her ward's funds, may the lawyer prepare an account that hides the misuse, or report the misuse to the court without her consent?
The committee concluded the lawyer may not prepare or file an account that conceals the misappropriation, is not obligated to report the misuse to the court absent the guardian's consent, and may not …
Can a lawyer who sits on a charity's board disclose a client's undisclosed savings to prevent the client from continuing to receive aid he may not qualify for?
The committee concluded that a lawyer should not voluntarily disclose a client's confidences to prevent a crime unless the intended act is so serious that prevention outweighs the duty of secrecy, and…
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Legal ethics opinions from the Los Angeles County Bar Association 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.