North Carolina State Bar Ethics Opinions
Free plain-English summaries of legal ethics opinions issued by the North Carolina State Bar, with full citations and source links on every page.
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Can a closing attorney disburse loan proceeds before recording when the realtor and seller demand it, even though the lender's instructions require recording first?
The opinion concluded that the attorney may not ignore the lender's instruction that recording precede disbursement: the lender is the attorney's client, the trust rules require disbursing entrusted f…
Can a firm holding a client's refunded appeal-bond money in trust keep it to satisfy unpaid fees the client owes?
The opinion concluded that the firm may not apply the refunded appeal-bond funds to unpaid fees unless its agreement with the client authorizes taking fees from funds held for the client, because trus…
Can a public defender do favors for jailed clients like cashing or buying money orders, and must client funds pass through a trust account?
The opinion concluded that nothing prohibits an attorney from doing such favors for clients, but money received from a client or for delivery to a client must be deposited into a trust account and dis…
Can a real estate lawyer disburse from the trust account at closing before the lender's out-of-state draft has cleared, relying on other clients' funds as float?
The opinion concluded no; the lawyer may not use the float of other clients' funds to cover a lender's uncollected draft, because if the draft fails the other clients' money is put at risk, though dis…
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Legal ethics opinions from the North Carolina State Bar 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.