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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Can a California lawyer charge a former client for the lawyer's own time and out-of-pocket attorney's fees spent collecting unpaid fees from that former client?
Only if a written, enforceable fee agreement contains a prevailing-party fee-shifting provision and the dispute is not in MFAA arbitration; otherwise the American rule and Trope v. Katz bar both items…
When a California client discharges a contingent-fee lawyer and successor counsel settles the case, what must the predecessor lawyer do to substantiate its quantum-meruit fee lien, and how must trust funds be handled while the lien is in dispute?
The opinion concludes that the predecessor lawyer owes a continuing fiduciary duty to the former client and must promptly quantify the quantum-meruit lien (with reconstructed time records or other rea…
May a California lawyer take a contingency fee agreement giving the lawyer the first proceeds of suit, shifting to the client the risk that the defendant's finances will limit recovery?
Yes, the agreement is enforceable if it is in a writing that complies with Bus. & Prof. Code section 6147 and the client provides informed consent based on the lawyer's full and fair disclosure of per…
May a California lawyer and client agree to a contingency fee calculated as a percentage of the combined damages plus court-awarded statutory attorney's fees in a fee-shifting case?
Yes. A retainer that defines gross recovery to include statutory fees and then takes a percentage of the whole is not fee splitting with a non-lawyer under former Rule 1-320(A), because the statutory …
Does a fee dispute that arises with a current client during the representation create an ethical conflict of interest that requires withdrawal under California's former Rules of Professional Conduct?
No. A fee dispute does not by itself require withdrawal or create a conflict of interest, and where the lawyer holds no lien it is not an adverse pecuniary interest in the client's property.
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…
Can a California lawyer agree to pay or indemnify a client for the litigation costs the client may be ordered to pay if the client loses the case?
The committee concluded that an attorney may agree to advance the reasonable expenses of a matter and waive repayment if there is no recovery, and may, either at the inception of the representation or…
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 1…
May a California lawyer accept as a fee for preparing and prosecuting a patent application a percentage of any future profits the patent generates, without complying with the adverse-interest rule for ownership transactions?
Yes. Per the opinion, a contingent right to be paid from future patent profits is not an adverse pecuniary interest under former Rule 3-300 because the lawyer cannot summarily extinguish the client's …
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…
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…
May a California lawyer charge a client interest on costs advanced on the client's behalf, covering the period from when the lawyer pays the cost to when the client is billed?
Per the opinion, only if the written fee agreement specifically provides for it. The Rules of Professional Conduct do not categorically prohibit such interest, but Bus. & Prof. Code section 6147 and t…
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…
May a California lawyer take a contractual lien on a client's recovery in one case to secure unpaid hourly fees owed in an unrelated case?
The opinion concluded that an attorney-client fee agreement may include an assignment of anticipated court-ordered statutory fees in one case to satisfy unpaid hourly fees in an unrelated client matte…
May a California lawyer pay reasonable litigation costs (such as court reporter fees) that the client has refused to pay, without violating Rule 4-210?
The opinion concluded that under former California Rule 4-210, an attorney may advance the reasonable expenses of prosecuting or defending an action notwithstanding the client's refusal to pay such co…
When a California lawyer takes a security interest (a deed of trust) in real property to secure fees, does former Rule 3-300 apply if the record title is held by a third party but the client claims an interest in the property?
The opinion concluded that former Rule 3-300 applied whenever the attorney knew the client had any interest in the property pledged. Rule 3-300 was not limited to property the client owns of record; t…
Can a California lawyer include retainer-agreement language limiting the client's recovery of punitive or non-economic damages in a malpractice action, or conditioning the lawyer's malpractice liability on the lawyer's representation of the client in a related third-party action?
The opinion concluded that under former Rule 3-400, a lawyer may not include retainer language limiting the client's right to recover punitive or non-economic damages in a malpractice action, and may …
Where a California attorney holds part of a retainer in trust as security for the final statement, may the attorney withdraw those funds to cover earlier unpaid interim statements, and does holding the funds in trust until earned constitute impermissible commingling?
The opinion concluded that where, by express agreement, an attorney holds a portion of a retainer as an advance against the last statement to be rendered, the attorney may not withdraw those funds to …
Under California Rule 1-500, may a law partnership agreement impose a reasonable cost on departing partners who compete with the firm in a limited geographical area?
The opinion concluded that, following Howard v. Babcock, a law partnership agreement may impose a reasonable cost on departing partners who compete with the firm in a limited geographical area; such a…
Must a California law firm obtain client consent to changes in fee calculation methods, and is it ethically permissible to require attorneys to meet a minimum-billable-hour productivity standard?
The opinion concluded that an attorney has a duty to inform the client of the fees charged, the methods used to calculate fees, and any alternative fee arrangements, and to obtain client consent; chan…
When a California attorney has notice of a medical lien on client settlement funds, may the attorney disburse the funds to the client per the client's instructions, or to the lienholder over the client's objection?
The opinion concluded that an attorney with notice of a medical lien may not simply disburse contested funds to the client even on the client's instruction, nor may the attorney pay the lienholder wit…
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…
Once the services in the retainer agreement are performed, is the lawyer obligated to continue representation on related matters, and does a fee dispute with a current client create a conflict requiring withdrawal before the lawyer may sue for fees?
The opinion concluded that an attorney's duty extends only to services for which the lawyer was retained. After contractual services are performed, the lawyer should not withdraw if prejudice will res…
When a California sole practitioner begins using additional attorneys (employees, contract lawyers, or outside firms) on a client matter, when is disclosure required, and when does Rule 2-200's written consent requirement for fee division apply?
The opinion concluded that disclosure of additional attorneys may be required under Rule 3-500 depending on the circumstances, including whether responsibility is changing, the new attorney is doing a…
Can a California attorney pursuing a client's fee dispute against former counsel threaten to have the client report that counsel to the State Bar to gain an advantage?
The committee concluded that an attorney involved in a fee dispute on a client's behalf against former counsel is subject to disciplinary action if the attorney threatens to have the client present cr…
Does a law firm partnership agreement that makes retirement payments contingent on whether a departing member keeps practicing law violate California's rule against agreements restricting the right to practice?
The committee concluded that such an agreement does not violate former Rule 1-500(A), because tying retirement payments to a member's retirement from practice falls within the Rule 1-500(B)(2) excepti…
Can a lawyer base a contingency fee on both the medical offset the insurer takes and the settlement the client actually receives in an uninsured/underinsured motorist claim?
The committee concluded that an attorney and client may agree to a contingency fee based on both the medical offset taken by the insurance carrier and the settlement actually received, if the contract…
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 …
Is it ethical for defense counsel in a civil rights case to condition a settlement offer on the plaintiff's lawyer waiving all right to court-awarded attorney's fees?
The committee concluded that, in civil rights and civil liberties cases, it is not ethically proper for defense counsel to condition a settlement offer on the plaintiff's counsel waiving all right to …
Is it improper for a lawyer to collect past-due spousal or child support on a contingent-fee basis in California?
The committee withdrew its earlier Opinion 263, which had called such a contingent-fee arrangement improper, concluding that the question turned on a doubtful determination of law that was outside the…
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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.