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.
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I once represented a corporation in a claim, and my associate handled its collection cases years ago. Now a different former employee wants me to sue that corporation for age discrimination. Does Rule 1.9 permit it?
The Panel concluded the attorney may represent the former employee against the corporation because the prior collection matters are not the same or substantially related to the age discrimination case…
My client's fiancé paid and co-signed for her legal fee, but I told him he was not the client. The engagement ended and he wants the unused fee back, while my client says it was a gift. Do I owe the fiancé a refund?
The Panel concluded the attorney has no obligation to refund the unused fee to the fiancé, because the attorney's duty runs only to the client, not to the third-party payer; the unearned portion must …
May I list the names of my paralegals and legal assistants on my law office letterhead if I separate them from the lawyers' names?
The Panel concluded no: listing non-lawyers on law firm letterhead is misleading to the public because it can create a false impression of a partnership between lawyers and non-lawyers, so only the na…
In a divorce case I gave opposing counsel inaccurate advice about the legal consequences of assigning part of my client's profit-sharing plan to the wife. Now that I know it was wrong, what do I owe my client and opposing counsel?
The Panel concluded the attorney must keep the client informed of the mistake under Rule 1.4, and, out of respect for the legal system and fairness to fellow lawyers under the Preamble, should notify …
Opposing counsel told me he represents the opposing parties and that all communications must go through him. May I still contact the opposing parties' insurance carrier directly, or contact the parties themselves?
The Panel concluded no: under Rule 4.2 the attorney may not contact the opposing parties' insurance carrier directly, and may not contact the represented opposing parties, without the consent of oppos…
If I win a seat on the town council, may I still appear before the town's Probate and Municipal Courts and Planning and Zoning staff, and represent criminal clients in cases involving the town's police, during my term?
The Panel concluded no in either case: applying Rule 1.11's rationale by analogy to concurrent government service, the council member may not appear before the town's courts or Planning and Zoning sta…
I once handled a divorce for someone, with no contact since. Now that former client is suing my current client, a furniture company, over defective goods. Does Rule 1.9 let me defend the furniture company?
The Panel concluded the attorney may represent the current client because the former client's domestic relations matter is not the same or substantially related to the defective-goods lawsuit, subject…
My firm represents a union, and my father is a city supervisor who sits on a trial board that decides disciplinary complaints against union members. Can we represent union members in that city despite my father's role?
The Panel concluded, applying Rule 1.8(i) by analogy, that the attorney may represent the union in all matters except those in which the father is or may be involved, and cautioned the firm to avoid e…
A clerical error at the Supreme Court means my opponent's appeal is not on record, which helps my client. May I tell my client, and must I alert the tribunal or opposing counsel to the mistake?
The Panel concluded the attorney may inform the client of the appeals status under the Rule 1.4 duty to keep the client informed, and, invoking the Preamble's principle of respect for the legal system…
At my old firm I represented a client in salvage claims. My new firm wants me to defend insurance companies against that same client in unrelated matters. Does Rule 1.9 permit it, and can the client disqualify me?
The Panel concluded the attorney may represent the defense insurance companies against the former client in matters not related to the former salvage representation, subject to the continuing duty und…
I represent several co-defendants, and one privately told me she violated a court order by taking the disputed funds (then replaced them on my advice). Must I disclose that under Rule 1.6, and does it create a conflict under Rule 1.7?
The Panel concluded the attorney may not disclose the co-defendant's admission because it is protected by Rule 1.6, and that if the attorney comes to believe a conflict has arisen among the co-defenda…
I drafted a joint estate plan for a husband and wife. Years later the wife, now divorcing, wants me to redesign her estate to exclude the husband. Does Rule 1.9 let me do that without the husband's consent?
The Panel concluded that if the wife's estate modification becomes materially adverse to the husband and the attorney obtained confidential information in the original joint representation that is rel…
My client's opposing guardian violated a Family Court order not to leave Rhode Island with the child. As an officer of the court, must I report the violation, or does Rule 1.6 protect what I learned?
The Panel concluded the attorney need not report the violation, because information learned during the representation is protected by Rule 1.6 unless an exception applies, such as Rule 3.3(a)(2) when …
My client, who is under treatment for a mental disorder, may not be able to manage the insurance proceeds I recovered for her, and she has withdrawn her consent to a limited guardianship. What are my obligations under Rule 1.14?
The Panel concluded that if the attorney reasonably believes the client cannot adequately act in her own interest, the attorney should seek appointment of a guardian; otherwise the attorney owes only …
A long-standing client wants me to bring a personal injury claim against someone I represented in a divorce fourteen years ago. Does Rule 1.9 let me take the case against my former client?
The Panel concluded that the attorney may represent the current client in the personal injury matter because it is not the same or substantially related to the former client's divorce action, but may …
May I offer a client company's employees a set menu of legal services at a fixed fee, with the employer simply announcing the program, and roll the same offer out to non-client businesses? Does Rule 7.3 allow it?
The Panel concluded the arrangement is acceptable for an existing client's employees so long as the employer's cooperation is voluntary, the employer receives no consideration, and employees face no p…
My client's health insurer says it has a lien on the settlement for the medical bills it paid, but my client tells me not to pay it. Do I follow the client or the insurer?
The panel concluded that if the health insurer has a legally enforceable interest in the funds (such as an assignment or statutory lien) the lawyer must notify it and pay it under Rule 1.15; if the in…
May I send an 'advertisement'-labeled direct mailing to businesses affected by a new regulation, offering legal help? And does it matter if a recipient is represented by counsel on unrelated matters?
The Panel concluded the mailing does not violate Rule 7.3 if the advertising requirements are strictly observed, and that a recipient's representation by counsel on unrelated matters does not bar the …
My spouse works in a supervisory role for a company that I am about to sue on behalf of one of its employees. Is that a conflict of interest under Rules 1.7, 1.8, or 1.9?
The Panel concluded there is no conflict of interest, because the conflict rules are concerned with conflicts between two clients, and representing the employee is not adverse to another client of the…
I represented a client who sold land to a real estate trust years ago and has been paid in full with no pending matters. The same investor group owns a second, unrelated trust. Can I buy an interest in either trust under Rule 1.8?
Yes. The panel held that because the attorney would not be entering into a business relationship with a client or a relationship adverse to a client, Rule 1.8's prohibited-transactions rule does not a…
A government agency I'm dealing with on a personal matter wants my accounts-receivable list, including client names, to assess my finances and target property for a lien. Can I hand it over?
The panel concluded that a client's identity is confidential information protected by Rule 1.6, so the lawyer may not provide the government agency with an accounts-receivable list containing client n…
A staff attorney at my agency gave a friend free advice in a custody case. The agency now represents the friend's opponent. Can another staff attorney represent the friend?
The panel concluded that no member of the agency's staff may undertake the representation, because the informal advice created an attorney-client relationship, making the friend a client whose interes…
I prepared a living will for a husband and an estate package for his wife. Now the wife wants to amend her trust to cut out his daughter and not tell him. Can I do it under Rule 1.9?
The panel concluded that the lawyer may amend the wife's estate plan without violating Rule 1.9, because preparing the husband's living will was not a substantially related matter and the amendment is…
A secondary health insurer paid my client's medical bills in a tort case but never filed a lien. Do I have to pay the insurer out of the settlement?
The panel concluded that, absent a lien and absent any assurance by the attorney that the bills would be paid, Rule 1.15(b) does not obligate the attorney to pay the secondary health insurer from the …
I'm a state child-support agency lawyer. I represent the state for one parent and, for a fee, a second parent, both owed support by the same father whose injury settlement can't cover both. Can I keep representing the second parent?
The panel concluded that because a single personal-injury settlement had to be apportioned between the state and the non-welfare parent, the two representations became directly adverse under Rule 1.7(…
Can I use a group television advertising service that runs a generic ad and show only an 800 number instead of my own or my firm's name?
The panel concluded that under Rule 7.2(d) any lawyer advertisement must include the name of at least one lawyer responsible for its content, so the inquiring attorney may not use the shared televisio…
I represent two clients in separate divorces. They are romantically involved and each could be a witness in the other's case. Can I keep representing both at the same time?
The panel concluded that Rule 1.7(a) did not bar the joint representation because the two divorces were not directly adverse, and that under Rule 1.7(b) the lawyer may continue to represent both clien…
I served as a state-appointed mediator between a school committee and a teachers' union. Can I now represent a committee member in an unrelated lawsuit against the former superintendent?
The panel concluded that because the lawyer had served only as an impartial mediator and had not represented either the school committee or the teachers' group, representing the committee member in th…
I'm counsel to a school committee and gave legal advice to its superintendent, whom the committee has now suspended. Can I answer the committee's special investigator's questions about him?
The panel concluded that under Rule 1.13 the lawyer's client is the school committee, not the superintendent, so the confidentiality duty owed to an attorney-client relationship under Rule 1.6 does no…
A nonlawyer wants to sell collection forms bundled with my services, refer the buyers to me, and pay me a cut of the form sales, plus name me in a pamphlet. Is that allowed?
The panel advised against the arrangement. It concluded that the nonlawyer's soliciting business for the lawyer violates Rules 7.3 and 5.3, that using the lawyer's name for the nonlawyer's solicitatio…
My firm once handled a defendant's misdemeanor and domestic cases. Can I now represent plaintiffs suing him for property damage, an unrelated matter, if everyone consents?
The panel concluded that, under Rule 1.9, if the attorney reasonably believes the current property-damage matter is not the same as or substantially related to the firm's prior misdemeanor and domesti…
I handled real estate closings for a married couple. Now I'm representing the husband in their divorce. Do I have to withdraw because the wife is a former client?
The panel gave a fact-specific answer under Rule 1.9: the wife is a former client, and if the attorney obtained information in the closings that would be helpful in the divorce, the matters could be s…
I once represented a man who later married someone now suing my client for age discrimination. Can I represent my client against that spouse, or is it a conflict?
The panel concluded there is no conflict, because the spouse was never the attorney's client and does not become a client or former client merely by marrying a former client; the only clients are the …
My firm wants to mail businesses letters offering a free meeting to discuss legal issues. Do we have to mark the letter 'advertisement,' even though it doesn't ask for their business?
The panel concluded that the letters are solicitation under Rule 7.3 even though they do not request employment, so the firm may send them only if each letter is clearly labeled 'advertisement' on the…
I think opposing counsel orchestrated a custody transfer to help his client dodge child support. Must I report him under Rule 8.3, and does the panel decide if it's a violation?
The panel concluded that whether opposing counsel's conduct raises a substantial question as to honesty, trustworthiness, or fitness is a largely subjective credibility determination for the witnessin…
I used to work at a state agency that was investigating someone my firm now represents. Can I work on that client's criminal and civil matters, or must I be screened?
The panel concluded that the former government lawyer may not personally represent the client in either the criminal or the related civil matter under Rule 1.11(a), because the lawyer participated in …
The deceased's attorney may be called as a witness in a will contest. Can I hire that attorney to prepare discovery on issues he won't testify about?
The panel concluded that the deceased's attorney may play a role in the representation short of trial advocacy, so preparing discovery is permitted; Rule 3.7 bars only a likely necessary witness from …
My partner drafted a will for a woman 13 years ago. Can I keep representing my client in a lawsuit against that woman now, or is she a former client I can't oppose?
The panel concluded that the attorney may continue the representation, because preparing the mother-in-law's will years earlier is not the same as or substantially related to her current action, so Ru…
I've witnessed other lawyers give false testimony and make misrepresentations. Does the ethics panel decide whether that's reportable misconduct under Rule 8.3, or do I?
The panel concluded that whether another lawyer's conduct raises a substantial question as to honesty, trustworthiness, or fitness is a largely subjective credibility determination that must be made b…
I drafted and witnessed a will that's now being contested, and I'll have to testify at trial, so I withdrew as trial counsel. Can I still handle discovery and pre-trial motions for the estate?
The panel concluded that, under Rule 3.7, a lawyer who will be a necessary witness at trial is barred only from acting as an advocate at the trial itself, and may still represent the executor or estat…
I won a judgment for a client, and now the defendant wants to pay, but I can't find my client. What are my obligations for collecting and disbursing the funds?
The panel concluded that a lawyer who cannot locate a client must exercise diligent efforts to find the missing client and to protect the client's interests within the scope of the retention agreement…
My client used my services to commit fraud and gave false testimony, then recanted at trial. Can I decline to represent him on the appeal?
The panel concluded that, under the permissive withdrawal rule the opinion labels Rule 1.17(b), the attorney may decline to continue the representation if the attorney reasonably believes the client u…
I'm defending a criminal case, and the prosecution may call a woman I represented in a 1984 divorce as a witness. Is that a conflict of interest?
The panel concluded there is no conflict, because Rule 1.9 bars a lawyer from opposing a former client only in the same or a substantially related matter, and a 1984 domestic-relations representation …
My client agreed in a divorce decree to pay his ex-wife half of his personal-injury settlement, but says he'll tell me not to pay her. What do I do with the funds?
The panel concluded that, under Rule 1.15, the attorney must promptly notify both the client and the ex-wife when the settlement funds arrive and must hold any disputed portion separate until the disp…
I was discharged from a PI case and filed an attorney's lien with the new lawyer, who settled and ignored my lien. Did he violate Rule 1.15, and do I have to report him under Rule 8.3?
The panel found it lacked sufficient facts to opine that Attorney B committed a violation, and stated that under Rule 8.3 the inquiring attorney must inform Disciplinary Counsel only if he or she has …
I settled a PI case for two family members, but Medicare has a lien and one relative is terminally ill. Can I give part of my fee back to them?
The panel concluded that because Medicare had an interest in the settlement, the attorney must promptly deliver Medicare the funds it was entitled to receive, and any reduced fee was owed to Medicare …
Can a Rhode Island lawyer join a nonprofit lawyer referral service that isn't run by the state bar and keeps a percentage of each fee?
The panel concluded that a lawyer may not participate; because the service is not operated, sponsored, or approved by the Rhode Island Bar Association, paying it a percentage of the fee for recommendi…
I took over a PI case, settled it, and the client says don't pay the doctor, but the doctor produces a medical lien the prior lawyer signed that wasn't in my file. What do I do with the money?
The panel concluded that placing the disputed funds in escrow complied with Rule 1.15, and that because prior counsel and the client had signed a lien creating the physician's reliance, the disputed p…
Someone came to me for an unrelated matter and hasn't paid yet, and I saw in the paper he's behind on child support. Can I report what I know to the state agency?
The panel concluded that an attorney-client relationship existed despite the unpaid fee, so the client's name, address, and phone number learned at the initial conference were confidential under Rule …
My firm does lender work and I want to add closings representing both lender and borrower with consent. What if I later have to foreclose for a lender against a borrower I represented on the purchase?
The panel advised the lawyer to follow the criteria of Rule 2.2 for acting as an intermediary between clients, and held that if and when a conflict arises between lender and borrower, the lawyer must …
I want to mail realtors an ad offering title searches and a 'closing cost coupon' crediting buyers they refer to me. Does that comply with the advertising rules?
The panel concluded that the mailing would comply if 'advertisement' appears in larger type on the letter, envelopes, and coupons and a copy goes to Disciplinary Counsel within 48 hours, but it declin…
I represented a birthmother in an adoption where everyone agreed the adoptive parents would stay anonymous. She now wants her whole file, which names them. Can I redact or withhold those identities?
The panel concluded that although Rule 1.17(d) obligates the attorney to surrender the client's papers on termination, because all parties, including the birthmother, agreed the prospective and actual…
I finished evaluating a client's malpractice claim and found it wasn't viable, but now I can't reach the client and my mail came back. What are my obligations?
The panel pointed to its General Information Opinion #6, which addresses a lawyer's obligation to exercise diligent efforts both to locate a missing client and to protect the client's interests.
I'm representing a husband in his divorce, and his current wife says I represented her in a divorce years ago. She objects. Can I stay in the case?
The panel concluded that the prior and current divorces were substantially related and the wife's interests were materially adverse to the husband's, so under Rule 1.9 the attorney may not continue re…
A judgment was entered against my client, who then moved. Opposing counsel says they'll collect but hasn't asked me for the new address. Do I have to volunteer it?
The panel concluded that because opposing counsel had not asked for the address, the attorney did not have to volunteer it, since the information is protected under Rule 1.6; but the attorney should k…
I referred a client to another lawyer. Do I get a share of all the fees that lawyer earns from the client, or only from the first case I referred?
The panel did not fix a first-case-only limit; it held that any division of a fee between lawyers in different firms is permitted only if it is proportional to the services performed or set by written…
I represent a corporation and gave one 50% shareholder some general advice. He left and kept his stock. Can I keep representing the company and the other shareholder in buying him out?
The panel concluded that under Rule 1.13(e) the lawyer may continue to represent the corporation and Stockholder B in the buyout, but subject to Rule 1.7 the lawyer must obtain Stockholder A's consent…
I'm a part-time lawyer and also a town's full-time police officer and prosecutor. Can I defend criminal defendants and practice in the Administrative Adjudication Court?
The panel concluded that the lawyer may represent criminal defendants so long as neither responsibilities to other clients nor the lawyer's own interests materially limit the representation under Rule…
Can I pay a referral fee to the lawyer who sent me the case if he did no work on it and there's no written fee-sharing agreement with the client?
The panel concluded that paying any portion of the fee to the referring attorney would violate Rule 1.5(e), because the referring attorney performed no services, there was no written agreement with th…
I think a paralegal at a law firm is passing himself off as a lawyer. Do I have to report it, and who is responsible for supervising him?
The panel explained that Rule 8.3 requires reporting lawyer misconduct, so if the firm's supervising lawyers' conduct rose to a Rule 8.3 violation the inquiring attorney was obligated to report it; th…
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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.