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 Michigan lawyer who is a former judge advertise that prior judicial service in print and video ads for the law firm?
The opinion concluded a lawyer who is a former judge may make a truthful statement referring to a past judicial position, including the years it was held, in communications subject to MRPC 7.1; anythi…
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 government law department let the agency's general IT department maintain a network holding confidential client files?
The opinion concludes a government law department may use the governmental unit's technical support staff to service a network containing client confidences without violating MRPC 1.6, provided the la…
Can a criminal defense lawyer interview the complaining witness without notice to or consent of the prosecutor?
The opinion concluded that a defense lawyer may contact a complaining witness ex parte because the witness is not the prosecutor's client, so MRPC 4.2 does not bar the contact; the lawyer must identif…
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 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…
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…
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 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 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…
Does a city attorney who prepares quitclaim deeds for tax-reverted property have to warn buyers that the title may not be insurable?
No; the lawyer's duty runs to the city client, and preparing the deeds is proper, so the lawyer need not volunteer personal doubts about title insurability to prospective purchasers, though the lawyer…
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 …
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 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…
Can a lawyer who becomes a full-time administrative hearing officer keep a private law practice and stay on the firm letterhead?
The opinion concluded that, unlike a judge, a lawyer who becomes a full-time administrative hearing officer is not per se barred from private practice, subject to conflict and confidentiality rules, b…
Can a Michigan judge appoint a private domestic-relations lawyer as a part-time referee and government liaison attorney, and must the judge then recuse from that lawyer's cases?
The judge may make the appointments, and the same lawyer may hold both roles, if the practitioner observes the conflict and screening limits of the referee and government-lawyer rules; the appointing …
Can an administrative law judge negotiate for a private job with a law firm that represents a party in a case still before the judge?
The opinion concluded that an administrative law judge may not negotiate for employment with an attorney for a party in any matter in which the judge is participating personally and substantially, inc…
If a lawyer serves part-time as a domestic relations referee, can the lawyer's firm appear before the referee, and can the lawyer act as referee or counsel in matters from the other role?
A part-time referee may later represent a party in a matter handled as referee only with all parties' consent (and firm screening), may not hear matters the referee handled as a lawyer, and is disqual…
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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.