State Bar of Nevada Ethics Opinions
Free plain-English summaries of legal ethics opinions issued by the State Bar of Nevada, with full citations and source links on every page.
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Can a personal injury lawyer own a business that buys and sells the medical liens of other lawyers' injury clients?
No. The Committee concludes it is unethical for a lawyer who handles personal injury cases to be in the business of buying and selling other attorneys' clients' medical liens, because the lawyer's per…
Can a lawyer accept an anonymous lump-sum cash payment that is meant to cover legal fees for the lawyer's clients and a co-defendant represented by a different lawyer?
The Committee concluded that accepting an anonymous lump-sum cash payment intended to cover fees for both the lawyer's clients and a co-defendant represented by another lawyer raises conflict and conf…
Is it an ethics violation for a lawyer to fail to pay a process server, filing service, or other vendor for costs incurred on a client's behalf?
The Committee concluded that a lawyer's failure to pay a third-party vendor for client costs is generally a contract matter for the courts, not an ethics violation. It becomes professional misconduct …
Can a lawyer disburse settlement proceeds from the trust account before the settlement check clears, if the lawyer is willing to cover a bounced check?
The Committee concluded that no, a lawyer may not disburse settlement proceeds (to anyone, including the client) until the check or draft has cleared the banking process and been physically deposited …
Can a lawyer collect a client's auto med-pay insurance proceeds, hold them in trust, and negotiate down the medical provider's bill before paying it?
The Committee concluded that yes, the Nevada rules do not prohibit a lawyer from obtaining a client's medical-payment coverage monies under an auto policy, holding them in trust until the end of the c…
Can a lawyer take a security interest in a client's real property to secure payment of the lawyer's fees?
The Committee concluded that yes, but only if the lawyer satisfies the business-transaction safeguards of SCR 158(1) (now NRPC 1.8(a)): the transaction must be fair and reasonable, fully disclosed in …
When a third party (such as a medical-lien holder) claims part of a client's settlement, what must the lawyer holding the funds do, especially if the client says don't pay?
The Committee concluded that under SCR 165 (now NRPC 1.15) a lawyer owes duties to a third party only when that party 'has' an actual interest in the specific funds (an assignment, statutory or contra…
Can a lawyer hold embezzled money a client deposited in trust, and must the lawyer turn it over to authorities?
The Committee concluded that a lawyer cannot use the attorney-client privilege to keep the fruits of a client's crime; the funds must be surrendered to an appropriate law enforcement official with ide…
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Legal ethics opinions from the State Bar of Nevada 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.