Can a lawyer also work as an insurance salesman, sell insurance to his legal clients, and prepare wills for his insurance customers?

Plain-English summary

Attorney A was a licensed practicing attorney in North Carolina who was also an insurance salesman for a reputable insurance company. The inquiry asked whether he could practice law and sell insurance, whether he could sell life insurance to a client for whom he was preparing a will, trust, or estate plan, and whether he could prepare wills and trust agreements for his insurance customers.

The opinion concluded: (1) Attorney A may ethically practice law and sell insurance in North Carolina; (2) he may not sell life insurance to a client for whom he is preparing a will, trust, or estate plan; and (3) he may prepare wills and trust agreements for his insurance customers, but only if there is no relevant relationship whatever between the legal services rendered and the insurance purchased by the client, and he must keep his insurance agency business and his legal practice separate in all respects.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 1979 under North Carolina's former Code of Professional Responsibility (the DR/EC framework), before the State Bar replaced the Code with the Rules of Professional Conduct (adopted 1985) and before the 2003 revisions to those Rules. The personal-interest and business-with-a-client principles it applied correspond to today's Model Rules 1.7 and 1.8. Subsequent rule amendments or later opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current guidance. Verify against current rules before relying on any specific rule, deadline, or requirement mentioned here.

Common questions

Q: Can a lawyer also work as an insurance salesman?

A: Yes. The opinion concluded a lawyer may ethically both practice law and sell insurance in North Carolina.

Q: Can the lawyer sell life insurance to a client whose estate plan he is preparing?

A: No. The opinion concluded a lawyer may not sell life insurance to a client for whom he is preparing a will, trust, or estate plan.

Q: Can the lawyer prepare wills for his insurance customers?

A: Yes, with a limit. The opinion concluded he may do so only if there is no relevant relationship between the legal services and the insurance purchased, and he keeps the two businesses entirely separate.

Background and rules framework

The opinion applied the former Code's personal-interest and business-with-a-client principles (corresponding to today's Model Rules 1.7 and 1.8) to a lawyer's dual occupation. The analysis turned on keeping the insurance sales and the legal services separate, so the lawyer does not profit from selling a product tied to the legal work he provides the same person.

Citations and references

Rules of Professional Conduct:

• North Carolina Code of Professional Responsibility (personal-interest conflicts; business dealings with a client)
• MR 1.7 (conflicts of interest); MR 1.8 (business transactions and interests adverse to a client)

See also

• NC Ethics Op. CPR 101: title certification to a lawyer's own insurer
• NC Ethics Op. RPC 24: buying client property at an execution sale

Source

• Landing page: https://www.ncbar.gov/for-lawyers/ethics-and-governing-rules/ethics-opinions/opinions/cpr-241/

Original opinion text

Reproduced from the official source for research purposes. The linked source is authoritative.

Inquiry:

Attorney A is a licensed practicing attorney in North Carolina. Attorney A is also an insurance salesman for a reputable insurance company.

1. May Attorney A ethically practice law and engage in the business of selling insurance in North Carolina?

Opinion: Yes.

2. May Attorney A sell life insurance to a client for whom he is preparing a will, trust or an estate plan?

Opinion: No.

3. May Attorney A prepare wills and trust agreements for his insurance customers?

Opinion: Yes, but only if there is no relevant relationship whatever between the legal services rendered and the insurance purchased by such client. Attorney A is required to keep his insurance agency business and his legal practice separate in all respects.