Oregon State Bar Ethics Opinions
Free plain-English summaries of legal ethics opinions issued by the Oregon State Bar, with full citations and source links on every page.
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Must a lawyer who works only as an arbitrator or mediator deposit advance fees in a lawyer trust account, even though no client relationship exists?
Yes. Advance fees a lawyer receives while serving as an arbitrator or mediator are not client property because there is no lawyer-client relationship, but they are 'property of third persons,' which O…
Can a county counsel's office communicate ex parte with, and prepare draft findings for, a county land-use hearing officer it helped hire?
Yes, qualified. Ex parte communication between county counsel and the planning division, hearing officer, or commissioners is not improper if authorized by ordinance or other law, by extension of the …
In a civil case, can a lawyer contact the opposing side's fact witnesses or retained expert without notice, and can the lawyer try to persuade a witness not to testify?
A lawyer may contact unrepresented adverse fact witnesses without notice. Contacting a retained adverse expert is barred in federal civil litigation, where the discovery rules limit it, but is not pro…
In a state criminal case, may a prosecutor or a defense lawyer contact the other side's designated expert witness about the subject of the expert's anticipated testimony?
Yes, for both. No professional-conduct rule directly governs contacting an opposing testifying witness, so the question turns on the criminal-discovery statutes, which favor access to witnesses and tr…
Can an Oregon lawyer charge a contingent fee in a divorce, support, or cohabitant property case?
Usually no. The opinion concludes Oregon RPC 1.5(c) bars a contingent fee whose payment or amount turns on securing a divorce or on the amount of support or property settlement, and it applies that ba…
Can a personal-injury lawyer charge a contingent fee that is calculated in part on the recovery of uncontested PIP benefits?
Yes, qualified. A contingent fee may include the recovery of PIP benefits as long as the lawyer's entire fee for the matter, both the PIP and non-PIP portions, is not clearly excessive or unreasonable…
Can a district attorney offer a plea bargain conditioned on the defendant waiving civil remedies against the arresting officers or resolving a related civil forfeiture?
Yes, qualified. Because the criminal charges are already pending, the offer is not a threat to present charges under RPC 3.4(g), and a simultaneous-settlement offer is not per se prejudicial to the ad…
Can a lawyer advise and represent a client in bankruptcy when the client owes the lawyer substantial fees that the bankruptcy would discharge?
Yes, qualified. The discharge of the lawyer's own fees creates a personal-interest conflict under RPC 1.7(a)(2), so the lawyer may advise and represent the client only with informed consent confirmed …
Can a lawyer represent a criminal defendant when a former client of the lawyer will testify as an expert witness for the prosecution?
No, qualified. A lawyer is not barred merely because a former client testifies adversely, but here the lawyer learned of the former client's wrongdoing during the earlier representation, making the ma…
When can an Oregon lawyer take a new case against a former client, and what counts as the same or a substantially related matter?
Not without consent. The opinion concludes that under Oregon RPC 1.9 a lawyer may not act against a former client in the same or a substantially related matter without each affected client's informed …
Can a lawyer produce and sell general legal-information audio or video recordings to the public with non-lawyer partners, and put the lawyer's name and practice area on them?
Yes: producing and marketing general legal-information tapes is not the practice of law, so RPC 5.5 and 5.4 do not bar the lawyer from joining with non-lawyers or sharing profits, and the lawyer may l…
Can a criminal-defense lawyer take possession of stolen property to return it, accept a retainer that may be the fruits of a crime, or take custody of a client's murder weapon?
A lawyer may help return stolen property to its owner absent an unlawful purpose, and may accept a retainer unless the lawyer knows the funds are the fruits of a crime; but a lawyer may not accept phy…
Can a lawyer reveal confidential client information to defend against a former client's malpractice claim in a fee dispute or to answer a bar complaint about the representation?
Yes: RPC 1.6(b)(4) lets a lawyer reveal information relating to the representation to the extent reasonably necessary for self-defense, including to establish a claim or defense in a controversy with …
Can an Oregon lawyer stop working on a client's lawsuit until the client pays overdue legal fees?
Not unilaterally. The opinion concludes a lawyer may seek the court's leave to withdraw for nonpayment under Oregon RPC 1.16, but if the court refuses leave, the lawyer must continue to represent the …
Can an Oregon lawyer contact jurors after a trial has ended?
This opinion no longer states current guidance. Oregon State Bar Formal Opinion 2005-9 has been superseded and replaced by OSB Formal Opinion 2005-143, which is the operative opinion on communicating …
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Legal ethics opinions from the Oregon 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.