South Carolina Bar Ethics Opinions
Free plain-English summaries of legal ethics opinions issued by the South Carolina Bar, with full citations and source links on every page.
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What conflicts arise when one firm's lawyers serve as the county attorney and town attorney while the firm also takes criminal and family-court appointments?
The committee concluded that the firm cannot represent parties adverse to the county or town it advises (such as in abuse-and-neglect cases or defendants arrested by its agencies), and members cannot …
Does a person's brief contact with a firm's secretary about an accident create an attorney-client relationship that bars the firm from later opposing him?
The committee concluded that whether the contact created an attorney-client relationship is a question of fact it could not decide definitively, but that on these facts, given the absence of legal adv…
Does a public defender's office have to stop appearing before a circuit judge because the judge's son works in that office?
The committee concluded that the Rules of Professional Conduct do not prohibit members of the public defender's office from appearing before the circuit judge, because Rule 1.8(i) addresses only perso…
Does insurance-defense counsel violate the rules by telling opposing counsel he has no authority to negotiate because the insurer controls settlement?
The committee concluded that, assuming the insured has limited the scope of the representation under Rule 1.2 and consented to the insurer directing litigation and settlement, defense counsel's statem…
Can a lawyer sue an opposing lawyer for malpractice on behalf of the very party his former client defeated, when he holds the former client's confidences?
The committee concluded that the lawyer must protect the confidential information received from his former client, and that unless the former client consents or the information has become generally kn…
Can a lawyer who serves on county council sue an elected or appointed county official, like the sheriff, on behalf of a private client?
The committee concluded that the suit is barred only if Rule 1.7(b)'s two preconditions are met (the lawyer-councilman has a responsibility to the proposed defendant, and that responsibility would mat…
Can a firm sue a former insurance-company client over the same kind of benefit-denial claims it once defended, and does reusable legal research create a conflict?
The committee concluded that a Rule 1.9 conflict exists to the extent the prior and present matters share a common course of conduct or company policy, which would make them substantially related; the…
Can a lawyer take a matter from an out-of-state collection agency on terms that forbid the lawyer from contacting or billing the actual client?
The committee concluded that if the agency is engaged in the unauthorized practice of law the lawyer is barred by Rule 5.5 from assisting it, and that even if it is not, the lawyer could not accept th…
Can a lawyer who personally investigated the case and talked to a key witness still try the case, or must the lawyer step aside as a necessary witness?
The committee concluded that if the lawyer is a necessary witness, Rule 3.7 disqualifies the lawyer from acting as advocate unless the lawyer can show that disqualification would work a substantial ha…
If a firm prepared an adoption agreement for both the adoptive couple and the birth mother, can it later sue the birth mother for the couple?
The committee concluded that, under Rule 1.9(a), if the firm represented both the adoptive couple and the birth mother, it may not later represent the couple in a suit against the birth mother to reco…
Can married lawyers appear on opposite sides of the same criminal appeal, one for the state and one for the defendant?
The committee concluded that Rule 1.8(i) permits married lawyers to represent adverse clients in the same matter only with each client's informed consent, and that the appellate nature of the practice…
If a defense lawyer is the only witness to a statement a trial witness now contradicts, must the lawyer withdraw to testify, and does being sole counsel change that?
The committee concluded that, under Rule 3.7, a lawyer likely to be a necessary witness to impeach another witness must withdraw as trial advocate unless disqualification would cause substantial hards…
Can a lawyer who sits on a state youth-services board represent a juvenile in a delinquency case that the agency makes recommendations in?
The committee, reconsidering its earlier opinion under the new Rules, concluded there is no blanket bar: because the board member only sets agency policy and does not adjudicate or have case-specific …
After closing a mortgage for the borrower, can the same lawyer later update the title, file a lis pendens, or handle the foreclosure for the lender?
The committee concluded that, assuming the lawyer represented the borrower or all parties at closing, updating the title is permissible because it only reports public record, but filing a lis pendens …
If a lawyer drafts a client's will naming himself executor and trustee, may he take both an executor's and a trustee's commission?
The committee concluded the question was not directly governed by the Rules: the lawyer could take a double commission on the same terms a non-lawyer could, but any commission method set in the will s…
When a law firm partner sits on city council, can the firm's other lawyers represent clients against the city or appear in city court?
The committee concluded that a councilman partner is barred under Rule 1.7(b) from representing clients adverse to the city, and that bar is imputed to the firm under Rule 1.10(a); but the Rules do no…
In an uncontested divorce, can one spouse's lawyer draft and file a responsive pleading and waiver of appearance for the unrepresented other spouse?
The committee concluded that a lawyer may draft and submit a responsive pleading and waiver of appearance for the unrepresented opposing party in a divorce, but only after deciding, on the facts, that…
Can law firm principals own a life insurance agency and refer their estate-planning clients to it for commissions?
The committee concluded the arrangement appears permissible only with full written disclosure and the client's written consent, and only if the lawyer constantly acts in the client's best interest des…
Can a former assistant solicitor defend criminal cases in the county where he served, and does it matter that his spouse is still a solicitor there?
The committee concluded that a former assistant solicitor may defend in the county where he served, except in a matter he handled personally and substantially as a public employee (which needs the sol…
When a law firm member serves as a part-time municipal judge, can the firm's other lawyers appear before that same court?
The committee concluded that a part-time municipal judge may not practice in the court he serves, and that disqualification is imputed to his law partners, who may not appear before that court either;…
Can a lawyer run an estate-planning arrangement with an insurance agency where the agent sends customer data, the lawyer writes a memo, and the agent sometimes pays?
The committee concluded the arrangement raises several issues the lawyer must manage: an unsolicited memo may be a solicitation under Rules 7.1 and 7.3, the customer may become a client triggering a R…
Can a private lawyer who sits on a public defender's board represent a co-defendant the public defender cannot take due to a conflict?
The committee concluded that a private lawyer who serves on a public defender or legal services board may represent clients adverse to the agency's clients under Rule 6.3, provided that in the board r…
If a lawyer stepped aside at trial because he might be a witness but never testified, can he represent the client on appeal?
The committee concluded that a lawyer who declined trial representation because of his potential witness status may represent the client on appeal where he did not actually testify, since the advocate…
Can an assistant solicitor appear before a circuit judge whose law clerk is the solicitor's own spouse?
The committee concluded that an assistant solicitor should be precluded from appearing before the resident judge on any matter while his spouse serves as that judge's law clerk, because a clerk person…
Can a lawyer guarantee a client's loan from an outside lender, to be repaid from settlement, instead of advancing the money directly?
The committee concluded that guaranteeing a client's loan from a lender, to be repaid from settlement proceeds, is improper for the same reasons direct loans are: it gives the lawyer a personal financ…
Can a lawyer who represents the guardian ad litem for abused children also contract to represent the state DSS at the review hearings in those cases?
The committee concluded the lawyer could not represent both the guardian ad litem (or child) and S.C. DSS in the same case, because the representation continues through the review hearings and DSS and…
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Legal ethics opinions from the South Carolina 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.