Oklahoma Bar Association Ethics Opinions
Free plain-English summaries of legal ethics opinions issued by the Oklahoma Bar Association, with full citations and source links on every page.
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What must a lawyer do when his name keeps appearing in law lists that the bar has not approved as reputable?
He must promptly act to discontinue the listing; under amended Rule 45 a lawyer who permits his card to continue in an unapproved publication after notice is guilty of unprofessional conduct, and unap…
Can a lawyer start an insurance-adjusting business and mail cards to insurance companies announcing the service?
If the lawyer adjusts claims, mailing such cards is prohibited solicitation under Rule 29; even a pure fact-investigation business raises concern when it can become a cloak for indirect solicitation o…
Could a lawyer accept a retainer and charge a reasonable fee to help a person obtain a leave of absence, parole, or pardon?
Yes. Adopting ABA Opinion 61, the Board concluded a lawyer may accept a reasonable fee for representing a convict in a parole or pardon application, subject to the rules of professional conduct: no so…
Could a lawyer have a professional card published in a newspaper, even free of charge, without violating the ethics rules?
The Board concluded no. Under amended Rule 29, a lawyer's card could be published only in an approved law list or directory; publishing cards in newspapers, with or without charge, was prohibited.
Could a lawyer pay to run a card stating he specializes in insurance litigation in a weekly insurance trade magazine that endorses him to its readers?
No. The Board concluded that a card in a weekly insurance trade magazine circulating among insurance salesmen and claim men was unethical, because the magazine is not a reputable law list and circulat…
Could lawyers let their business cards run in a newspaper column promoting professional firms to the public?
The Board concluded no. Causing the insertion of lawyer cards in such a newspaper column, or permitting their continued publication, was improper solicitation of business by advertisement under Rule 2…
Could a lawyer pay a newspaper to publish his photograph and name, labeled as an attorney, in a special anniversary edition?
No. The Board concluded a lawyer could not pay to have his photograph and name, with a designation such as 'lawyer' or 'attorney at law,' published in a newspaper's anniversary edition; the practice w…
Could a lawyer mail form letters soliciting taxpayers to hire him for tax-refund claims if the letters never mention that he is an attorney and say no law practice is involved?
The Board concluded no. Mailing the form letters to obtain taxpayers' refund business was solicitation of law practice prohibited by Rule 29, and it made no difference that the letters did not identif…
Could a lawyer buy small heirs' interests in an estate, take title through a relative, and file partition suits to force a sale for his own gain?
The Board concluded the practice was improper and unethical, condemning it under Rule 30 (stirring up litigation) and Rule 31 (upholding the honor of the profession) and as a violation of the lawyer's…
Was it ethical for a lawyer to inject himself into a pending case as amicus curiae, and to seek or solicit work as an amicus?
The Board concluded that an amicus appears only by the court's permission, must disclose any interest in a similar case and present his views fairly, and that it is not ethical to solicit 'practice' a…
Could a lawyer also work as an abstracter, holding out to the public and practicing both callings at the same time?
The Board did not flatly forbid it but concluded, following its prior opinions, that a lawyer who simultaneously practiced law and ran a lay abstracting business would undoubtedly be under suspicion o…
Could a lawyer paid to examine titles for a lender solicit the owner to hire him to quiet title on the same property?
The Board concluded no. A lawyer paid by a lender to examine titles could not properly solicit and accept employment from the owner to quiet the title, and doing so would expose him to the criticism o…
Can a lawyer take charge of a merchants' association's collections on a contingent basis?
The Board concluded that if the work includes legal services such as forcing collections by suit it violates Rules 29 and 37; collecting accounts without suit is not the practice of law, but a lawyer …
Can a lawyer join a barter-and-trade exchange that pays him in redeemable coupons and takes a commission on the business it sends him?
The Board disapproved the arrangement and said it would merit discipline, because it would let a lay agency exploit the lawyer's services (Rule 37) and make the exchange operator a touter securing bus…
Can a lawyer accept a criminal defendant who, on his own initiative, wants to replace his prior appointed counsel, and must the new lawyer first contact the old one?
The Board concluded the lawyer did not breach the rules because the defendant, not the lawyer, sought the change; a defendant may choose his own counsel, but a lawyer may not solicit clients through t…
Can a lawyer state a specialty like 'prosecute and defend damage suits' on his office door or professional card?
The Board concluded the rules do not preclude specializing, and that while Rule 45 allows a simple card to state a special branch of practice, the wording 'prosecute and defend damage suits' savored o…
Can a lawyer run a business card listing practice areas and a specialty in the classified section of a telephone directory or newspaper?
The Board concluded both placements violated Rule 29: telephone directories are not within the law-list exception, and no Oklahoma local custom sanctioned such business cards in newspaper advertising …
Can a lawyer contract with a lay membership association to represent its individual members at a discounted fee?
The Board concluded the arrangement would violate the Rules of Professional Conduct: it would amount to the practice of law by a lay organization, and the lawyer would be soliciting business by indire…
May a practicing lawyer also act as an insurance agent and write fire insurance for family members and others?
The Board concluded that a lawyer in active practice may write fire insurance, provided he observes the standard of conduct required of a bar member and does not use the insurance business to obtain l…
Can a criminal-defense lawyer furnish his wife as surety on his clients' appearance bonds, in effect acting as a bond broker?
The Board disapproved. Furnishing the lawyer's wife as surety, as his alter ego, fell within the spirit of the statute barring an attorney from signing bonds in his own cases, violated Rule 31, and im…
Is a newspaper card reading 'General Practice - Fair Treatment' improper solicitation, and is a notice of change of address?
The Board concluded the card is barred solicitation under Rule 29; the phrase 'Fair Treatment' distinguished it from a permissible professional card. A mere notice of removal, by contrast, is not soli…
Can a law firm form and manage a lay claims-adjustment bureau that solicits business and operates out of the firm's office?
The Board concluded no. A lawyer-run adjustment bureau that solicits business and channels it to the firm is condemned as indirect solicitation through a lay agency and as letting a lay agency exploit…
Is a lawyer's enlarged or multi-heading telephone-directory listing improper advertising, and does a lay insurance adjuster who tries workers' compensation cases practice law?
The Board concluded both are improper. A paid directory listing in distinctive type or under multiple headings is advertising barred by Rule 29, and a lay insurance representative who tries cases befo…
Can a lawyer mail postcards to other lawyers across the state advertising that he writes briefs and will appear in any court?
The Board of Governors concluded no. Soliciting business by circular or advertisement not warranted by personal relations violated Rule 29, and there was no distinction between soliciting the public a…
Can a trust company solicit will business by mail, and what is the position of its lawyer trust officer who takes part in the plan?
The Board of Governors concluded that if the trust company drafts wills or advises on them, it engages in the unauthorized practice of law, and the lawyer trust officer who participates is a party to …
Can a lawyer pay to have his photograph and biographical description published in a newspaper feature?
The Board of Governors concluded no. Adopting ABA Opinion 43, it held that a lawyer's paid-for photograph with his name, address, and vocation was solicitation of business by advertising condemned und…
Can a lawyer use runners or touters to bring in business, or maintain a standing business association with a habitual usury violator?
The Board of Governors concluded no to both. Knowingly accepting the services of runners or touters to secure business violated the rules and could result in disbarment, and a standing business associ…
Can a lawyer who runs a collection service mail circular letters to merchants' associations soliciting accounts to collect?
The Board of Governors concluded no. Mailing such solicitation letters was solicitation of business by circular not warranted by professional relations under Rule 29, and using a collection-service ag…
Can a lawyer advertise or mail circulars to other lawyers offering to research and write briefs for them for a fee?
The Board of Governors concluded no. Soliciting business by circular or advertisement not warranted by personal relations was unprofessional under Rule 29, so a lawyer who advertised brief-writing ser…
Can a corporation set up an in-house legal department and advertise legal services to the public by employing licensed lawyers to do the work?
The Board of Governors concluded no. A corporation that furnishes legal services to its customers through employed lawyers is engaged in the unauthorized practice of law in violation of Section 48 of …
May a bar association operate a lawyer referral service and advertise it without violating the canons against solicitation?
Yes, within limits. The committee concluded that a bar association may sponsor a properly organized lawyer referral service meeting stated minimum requirements, and that Canon 27 does not bar the orga…
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Legal ethics opinions from the Oklahoma Bar Association 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.