Rhode Island Supreme Court Ethics Advisory Panel Ethics Opinions

Free plain-English summaries of legal ethics opinions issued by the Rhode Island Supreme Court Ethics Advisory Panel, with full citations and source links on every page.

695 opinions · Updated July 18, 2026

121 opinions Former Clients

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I used to represent Mr. Y before the City Planning Board, where Mr. X (a Board member at the time) raised a boundary dispute between his property and Mr. Y's. I no longer represent Mr. Y, and Mr. X now wants me to represent him in that same boundary dispute against Y. Can I take the case?

Not without Mr. Y's consent. The panel held that unless the former client, Mr. Y, expressly consents after consultation, representing Mr. X in the boundary dispute would violate Rule 1.9's bar on repr…

May 4, 1989

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Conflicts Of Interest (250) Former Clients (121) Confidentiality (118) Advertising (80) Government Lawyers (78) Conflict Of Interest (64) Withdrawal (56) Client Property (50) Fee Arrangements (50) Solicitation (42) Trust Accounts (42) Client Communication (33)

Legal ethics opinions from the Rhode Island Supreme Court Ethics Advisory Panel 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.

Ethics opinions from other bars

Alabama State Bar (139) Alaska Bar Association (146) American Bar Association (148) Board of Professional Responsibility of the Supreme Court of Tennessee (203) Colorado Bar Association (89) Disciplinary Board of the Hawaii Supreme Court (19) District of Columbia Bar (182) Illinois State Bar Association (389) Kentucky Bar Association (380) Los Angeles County Bar Association (100) Maine Board of Overseers of the Bar (216) Massachusetts Bar Association (127) Minnesota Lawyers Professional Responsibility Board (26) New Hampshire Bar Association (35) New Jersey Supreme Court Advisory Committee on Professional Ethics (558) New York City Bar (178) New York State Bar Association (923) North Carolina State Bar (578) Ohio Board of Professional Conduct (453) Oklahoma Bar Association (328) Oregon State Bar (195) Pennsylvania Bar Association (21) South Carolina Bar (504) State Bar Association of North Dakota (48) State Bar of Arizona (181) State Bar of California (189) State Bar of Georgia (64) State Bar of Michigan (245) State Bar of Montana (78) State Bar of Nevada (61) State Bar of New Mexico (90) State Bar of Wisconsin (262) Texas Professional Ethics Committee (707) The Florida Bar (543) The Mississippi Bar (162) Utah State Bar Ethics Advisory Opinion Committee (102) Virginia State Bar (299) Washington State Bar Association (1104) West Virginia State Bar (Lawyer Disciplinary Board) (104)