May a lawyer send a debtor a letter dressed up to look like court process to pressure payment before any suit is filed?

Plain-English summary

A lawyer asked about the propriety of a letter sent in connection with collecting a $30 account. The letter, on the lawyer's letterhead, was addressed at large to a "Justice of the Peace" (with no particular justice named) and asked that a constable or deputy sheriff verify the debtor's address so that the lawyer could send "the necessary papers for immediate suit, garnishment, attachment, execution, replevin or whatever action we decide will get the quickest and best results," enclosing a stamped reply envelope.

The committee concluded the practice was improper. It reasoned that the letter was never sent, and was never intended to be sent, to any justice of the peace, because it identified none by name. The obvious purpose of the letter was to create the impression that judicial proceedings had been commenced to collect the account. Being misleading, the committee said, its use borders on the "fraud or chicane" prohibited by Canon 15 and is clearly inconsistent with the lawyer's duty to uphold the honor and maintain the dignity of the profession.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 1952, decades before Oklahoma replaced its original Rules of Professional Conduct (patterned on the ABA Canons of Professional Ethics) with the Oklahoma Rules of Professional Conduct (adopted 1988) and the later Ethics 2000 revisions. Canon 15, the rule against fraud and chicane applied here, belongs to that superseded canon-era code; the current rules on a lawyer's honesty and on conduct involving misrepresentation are stated differently today. Subsequent rule amendments and 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 Treat this page as historical context, not current guidance.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: What made the collection letter improper?

A: The committee found the letter's obvious purpose was to create the false impression that judicial proceedings had begun, and that this misleading use bordered on the fraud or chicane prohibited by Canon 15.

Q: Why did the committee conclude the letter was never meant for a justice of the peace?

A: It reasoned that had the letter been sent or intended to be sent to a justice of the peace, it would have identified a particular justice by name, rather than being addressed at large to "Justice of the Peace."

Background and rules framework

The opinion applied Canon 15 of the Canons of Professional Ethics, adopted in Oklahoma, which barred a lawyer from resorting to fraud or chicane and required the lawyer to uphold the honor and maintain the dignity of the profession. The opinion predates the Model Rules and made no Model Rule citation.

Citations and references

Rules of Professional Conduct:

• Canon 15 (ABA Canons of Professional Ethics, adopted by the Oklahoma Bar): a lawyer must not resort to fraud or chicane and must uphold the honor and dignity of the profession.

See also

• Okla. Bar Ethics Op. 156: Prosecutor using the office as a collection agency
• Okla. Bar Ethics Op. 52: Law office used as a collection agency branch

Source

• Landing page: https://www.okbar.org/ethics/ethics-opinion-no-159/

Original opinion text

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

Adopted October 8, 1952

QUERY

A lawyer has asked for an opinion concerning the propriety of the use of the following letter, which letter was sent to the debtor:

HAROLD BLANK

Attorney at Law

321 Court Bldg.

Blank, Oklahoma

April 23, 1952

Justice of the Peace,

Midwest City, Oklahoma.

Dear Sir:

Richard Roe, assignee for Dr. Doakes

In the Matter of the v.

Claim of

John City, $30.00 311 E. Main St., Midwest City, Okla.

Please have a constable or deputy sheriff verify the above address at once. Then notify me, so I can send you the necessary papers for immediate suit, garnishment, attachment, execution, replevin or whatever action we decide will get the quickest and best results.

Enclosed find stamped envelope for your prompt reply, as I want to start action immediately.

Yours truly,

Harold Blank

OPINION

It is improper for a lawyer to deliver or mail to a debtor, prior to the institution of an action upon an account, an instrument resembling process, although in the form of a letter and addressed at large to a “Justice of the Peace”.

The only conclusion that can be reached is that the letter was never sent to any Justice of the Peace, nor was it intended to be sent to such; had it been so sent or intended it would have identified a particular Justice of the Peace by name.

The obvious purpose of the letter is to create the impression that judicial proceedings have been commenced for collection of the account; being misleading its use borders on the “fraud or chicane” prohibited by Canon 15; and its use is clearly inconsistent with the duty of a lawyer which is at all times to uphold honor and to maintain the dignity of the profession.