State Bar of Michigan Ethics Opinions
Free plain-English summaries of legal ethics opinions issued by the State Bar of Michigan, with full citations and source links on every page.
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Can a lawyer who is running against a sitting judge keep representing clients in cases before that same judge?
The opinion concludes there is no per se bar. The lawyer-candidate may continue the representation but must disclose the candidacy to the client at the earliest opportunity under MRPC 1.4(b) and decid…
Can a lawyer refer clients to a third-party lender that auto-debits the client's account to pay the lawyer's fees and waives the client's defenses?
The opinion concluded that a lawyer may not participate in such a lending scheme: it is the provision of financial assistance to a client barred by MRPC 1.8(e), it is a business transaction giving the…
Can a lawyer who represents a judge also appear before that judge for other clients in unrelated matters, and what must the lawyer do about disqualification?
Representing the judge is a conflict that the non-judicial client can consent to, but if the judge does not raise disqualification as the Judicial Code requires, the lawyer who continues the matter vi…
Can a lawyer take a flat fee from an insurer to defend its insured, and can the lawyer agree to keep that fee arrangement secret from the insured?
The opinion concludes a fixed-fee insurance-defense arrangement is permissible so long as it does not impair the lawyer's independent judgment, competence, or diligence. Disclosure of the fee basis to…
Can a Michigan judge married to a non-supervisory assistant prosecutor preside over the prosecutor's office's cases without each party's consent?
If the spouse is non-supervisory, not involved in the matter, and screened, the judge is not automatically disqualified and may preside after disclosure; any party may still move to disqualify, and re…
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 disqualif…
Can a county set up a separate 'conflicts' public defender office to represent codefendants the main public defender cannot?
The opinion concluded that a county may ethically establish a separate public defender office to represent defendants adverse to the original office's clients, provided the two offices are completely …
Can a lawyer advance a client's court-imposed fines and costs at sentencing and seek reimbursement from the client?
The opinion concluded that a lawyer is not barred from advancing court-imposed fines and costs for a client, provided the client remains responsible for reimbursing the lawyer; the litigation is essen…
Can a part-time Michigan family court referee represent private clients before the judges who appoint and supervise the referee, or before other referees in the same circuit?
A part-time referee may not appear in domestic-relations matters before the appointing or supervising judges (absent waiver or a visiting judge) or before other referees in the same circuit, but may t…
Can a lawyer refer personal-injury clients to a company that advances them cash in exchange for a share of their lawsuit proceeds?
The opinion concluded that a lawyer who agreed to refer tort clients to a venture-capital company taking an interest in their case proceeds would have an irreconcilable conflict of interest, and that …
Can a lawyer have a client waive the right to sue for malpractice in exchange for a lower billing rate?
The opinion concluded that a lawyer may not condition a reduced billing rate on the client's prospective waiver of malpractice liability, because MRPC 1.8(h)(1) bars such an agreement unless it is per…
Can a law firm hire lawyers leased from an employee-leasing company, and what must it tell clients?
The opinion concluded that using a lawfully leased temporary lawyer is not per se unethical if all participants follow the rules: the firm must control the law-related work, screen for conflicts, avoi…
Can a Michigan judge join an investment club whose members include lawyers who might appear before the judge?
A judge may join an investment club with no lawyer members, and may join one with lawyer members only if those lawyers are not likely to appear before the judge; if a lawyer member does appear, the ju…
When a contingency case unexpectedly has to go to trial, may a lawyer renegotiate the contingent fee to an hourly fee and take a lien on the client's separate lawsuit to secure payment?
A lawyer may renegotiate a contingent fee, but bears the burden of meeting the business-transaction safeguards, and may accept (but not require) an assignment of other litigation proceeds if the clien…
Can a lawyer take a one-third contingent fee for a conservatorship's insurance claim, with part of the fee paid from money recovered for the care facility, and should the facility also be a client?
Yes; the client is the conservatorship as an entity, the written contingent fee may include a share of the facility's recovery if the client consents, and the facility should not be a client because t…
If a lawyer might be a necessary trial witness about fees, is the lawyer barred from pre-trial work, and are the lawyer's associates disqualified from trying the case?
No; MRPC 3.7 reaches only acting as advocate at trial, so the lawyer may handle pre-trial matters, and under 3.7(b) the disqualification is not imputed to associates absent an independent 1.7 or 1.9 c…
Does running a group pro se self-help divorce or custody clinic create a client-lawyer relationship with attendees, and does it conflict the legal-aid agency out of later representing a party against a former attendee?
No; with no confidential information taken and a signed agreement disavowing representation, no client-lawyer relationship forms, there is no conflict when a couple attends together, and the agency ma…
When a CEO privately asks a subordinate in-house lawyer for advice about firing the general counsel, may the lawyer give that advice, must the lawyer tell the general counsel, and must the lawyer alert the board?
The lawyer represents the corporation, so it may not share the CEO's confidence with the general counsel; it may advise the CEO if its judgment is not materially limited by self-interest; and on these…
Does an adversary's threat to call the opposing lawyer as a trial witness, about a conversation the lawyer is sure never happened, force that lawyer to withdraw as trial counsel?
No; under MRPC 3.7 the lawyer must judge whether the lawyer is likely to be a necessary witness, and an adversary's threat does not by itself make the lawyer's testimony necessary or require withdrawa…
Can a lawyer newly hired to handle appeals for a county prosecutor's office keep representing a criminal defendant on appeal when the prosecution was run by the Attorney General in another county and the new office will not appear in the case?
Yes; under MRPC 1.11(c) a lawyer who becomes a public officer is barred from a matter only where the governmental employer is also a party, and here the County 1 prosecutor was not and will not be a p…
Can a lawyer let a third party (here a university and its insurer) pay the client's defense fees under conditions like consultation rights and a no-future-adversity clause?
Only if the client consents after full disclosure and the lawyer is satisfied the arrangement will not interfere with independent judgment or the client-lawyer relationship; consent cannot cure an arr…
When drafting a client's will or trust, can the lawyer suggest being named as the personal representative or trustee, and as the estate's lawyer?
The lawyer may not suggest naming themselves as personal representative or trustee, since that is solicitation, but may accept the nomination if the client asks independently and the lawyer makes the …
Can a lawyer keep representing a client against a city after the lawyer's spouse is elected to that city's commission?
The opinion concluded that the lawyer may continue the representation if the lawyer reasonably believes it will not be adversely affected and the client consents after consultation; if a disqualifying…
Can a former judge represent a party on a child-support matter where, as judge, the lawyer issued the support order at issue?
The opinion concluded that the former judge may not represent a party in a matter in which the lawyer participated personally and substantially as a judge unless all parties consent after consultation…
If a licensed lawyer worked as a paralegal for a company, can the lawyer join a firm that sues that company?
The opinion concluded that the transferring-lawyer conflict rules apply because the inquirer is now a lawyer, so the lawyer may not use the former employer's protected information against it and the n…
Can a prosecutor's office run a pro bono program staffed by its own lawyers, and label those appearances as the prosecutor's office?
The opinion concluded a prosecutor may establish a pro bono program for office lawyers, but each lawyer must independently check for conflicts under MRPC 1.7, 1.9, and 1.11, and it is misleading to la…
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…
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 …
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…
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 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…
Can a lawyer accept guardian ad litem appointments to represent abused and neglected children when the lawyer's spouse works at a county youth home and an in-law works for the prosecutor's office?
Yes. A lawyer may accept those appointments where neither relative would be a witness in, or otherwise affect, the lawyer's cases; on these facts no conflict exists and no disclosure is even required.
After leaving the prosecutor's office, can a former assistant prosecutor be appointed to represent indigent defendants in felony and related matters?
Generally yes, unless the lawyer participated personally and substantially in the matter as a prosecutor (absent the office's consent) or holds confidential government information usable against a per…
Must a Michigan judge whose spouse is a supervising assistant prosecutor recuse when the prosecutor's office appears, and can the judge offer a waiver?
The judge must disclose the relationship, the appearing prosecutor must disclose whether the spouse participated personally and substantially, and the judge is recused unless the parties voluntarily a…
Can a law firm represent clients before a public board if a lawyer who sits on that board is 'of counsel' to the firm, where the board member abstains from the firm's matters?
No. A firm whose of-counsel lawyer sits on a public board may not represent clients in matters before that board, and the board member's abstention does not cure the conflict.
After serving as a party's partisan member of a mediation panel, can the lawyer represent that party in later litigation on the same matter?
Only with all parties' consent; a lawyer who acted as a partisan mediator on a panel may not later represent the selecting party in subsequent litigation on the same or a substantially related matter …
After serving as a court-appointed guardian ad litem and reporting on a ward's care, can the lawyer later represent a relative seeking to adopt that ward?
No; having acted substantially as a public officer and likely acquired confidential information, the lawyer is barred from representing the relative, whose adoption position is inconsistent with the l…
Can a law firm holding a county contract as public guardian or conservator also serve as legal counsel to the wards it is appointed to protect?
No; a lawyer who is a ward's guardian or conservator may not also act as the ward's legal counsel on matters outside the fiduciary duties, because the dual role collapses the checks and balances the r…
Can independent Michigan law firms that work together use joint letterhead, call themselves 'affiliated,' and refer conflicted clients to each other?
The opinion concluded that lawyers who are not actually in the same firm may not use joint letterhead, even with a disclaimer; they may advertise jointly only if the advertising clearly shows they are…
Can a lawyer represent a bar applicant in character and fitness proceedings when a colleague at the firm sits on the character and fitness committee?
The opinion concluded that no member of a law firm may represent a private client in character and fitness proceedings when another lawyer in the firm serves on the State Bar Standing Committee on Cha…
Can a lawyer skip a client trust account by paying the client from the operating account and depositing settlement proceeds there?
The opinion concluded that a lawyer may not avoid a trust account by paying the client's share out of the operating account and then depositing all settlement proceeds into that operating account; the…
Can a lawyer run a nonlaw business that sends nonlawyer agents door-to-door selling will and trust forms and consulting with buyers?
No; the scheme risks the unauthorized practice of law by the agents, prevents the lawyer from protecting confidences and screening conflicts, violates the ban on in-person solicitation, and likely pay…
Can a lawyer refer law clients to a financial-planning business the lawyer owns, and take legal-work referrals back from it?
Yes, if the lawyer discloses the ownership interest, complies with the business-transaction rule, lets the client seek other providers and independent counsel, and keeps independent judgment; but the …
Must a lawyer appointed as a ward's next friend withdraw when the ward sues the lawyer for conspiracy?
The opinion concluded that a lawyer appointed as next friend is not per se required to withdraw merely because the ward files suit against the lawyer; the appointing judge decides whether withdrawal i…
Can a Michigan lawyer advertise free will drafting for clients who want to leave a bequest to a particular organization the lawyer is connected to?
The opinion concluded that a lawyer may advertise that the lawyer will prepare a will and bequest without charge for a client who wishes to leave a testamentary bequest to a particular organization, b…
When a lawyer pursues an estate's accident claims, can the lawyer also represent the decedent's medical creditors and charge them a fee out of the recovery?
The lawyer may represent both the estate and the medical providers if no dispute over the bills makes them adverse, but cannot represent either side in a dispute over the bill, and cannot double-charg…
Can a firm represent a client against someone who once had a brief consultation with another lawyer in the firm on the same matter but disclosed no confidences?
Yes; a brief consultation that reveals no confidences or secrets does not create a client-lawyer relationship, and the firm may take the adverse matter as long as the duty to protect any information s…
Can a lawyer run a seminar where a nonlawyer sponsor splits the attendee fee and people execute estate documents on the spot with little individual advice?
No. The opinion concluded a lawyer may not deliver legal services at such a seminar: it deceptively advertises personal advice the format cannot provide, splits fees with a nonlawyer sponsor, cannot p…
When a lawyer is hired by a parent to pursue a child's injury claim but the parent then wants to drop it, who is the client and what must the lawyer do?
The opinion concluded the minor child, not the parent, is the client; when the parent's interest in dropping the claim conflicts with the child's, the lawyer should seek appointment of a guardian ad l…
Can a lawyer who sits on the county board that funds the courts still appear as an advocate before those courts in Michigan?
The opinion concluded there is no per se bar to a lawyer-commissioner appearing before courts the county board funds, but the lawyer may not handle matters adverse to the county, matters in which the …
If a client offers to slant testimony for money and won't take it back, can the lawyer tell the court, and can the firm still represent the other parties?
The opinion concluded the lawyer has discretion to reveal the offer to tailor testimony for pay once the client is counseled and refuses to rectify it, and that the lawyer and the whole firm are disqu…
Can a Michigan lawyer who is also a licensed insurance agent sell insurance to law clients, share an office between the two businesses, and solicit legal work from insurance customers?
The opinion concluded that a lawyer/insurance agent may sell insurance to law clients if the business-transaction, confidentiality, and conflict rules are met, may office-share the two businesses if t…
If a lawyer represents several plaintiffs and some want to accept a case-evaluation award while others reject it, can the lawyer keep representing all of them?
The opinion concluded the split creates a conflict, but because it arises from the clients' differing settlement decisions rather than a factual or legal dispute, the clients may waive it; otherwise t…
Can a lawyer represent settling parties when an adverse third party pays the fee, pays only if the parties settle on the third party's terms, and limits the lawyer to explaining that settlement?
No. The opinion concluded the arrangement is an impermissible conflict because being paid only if the clients settle, and only to explain the third party's proposed settlement, would materially limit …
Is a lawyer who serves part-time as a state hearing referee disqualified from city-attorney cases involving the same insurer that appears before the referee?
The opinion concluded that the lawyer is not automatically disqualified, provided the lawyer owes no duties to the insurer as assistant city attorney and did not participate personally and substantial…
Can a Michigan probate judge hire a lawyer as a court employee to represent the juveniles and parents who appear before that judge?
Yes, but only if the judge does not interfere with the lawyer's independent judgment or the lawyer-client relationship, avoids ex parte contacts, and minimizes any appearance of bias; the lawyer must …
If a paralegal screens a prospective client and gathers case details, is that information confidential, and can it conflict the lawyer out of an adverse matter even if the lawyer never met the person?
Yes. The opinion concluded information a legal assistant collects from a prospective client is protected to the same degree as if the lawyer collected it, and if it is confidential and important, it c…
Can a prosecutor whose office also serves as county corporation counsel sue two county commissioners for holding incompatible offices?
Yes. The opinion concluded there is no conflict because the prosecutor's office represents the county as an entity, not the individual commissioners, so the prosecutor, and the whole office, may bring…
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Legal ethics opinions from the State Bar of Michigan 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.