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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Can a lawyer help a client prepare pleadings the client files pro se, and does the lawyer have to disclose that assistance to the court?
Yes. A lawyer may limit representation to preparing documents a client files under the client's own name if the limitation is reasonable and the client gives informed consent, and the lawyer is not re…
If opposing counsel copies their own client on an email to me, can I hit reply-all and include that represented client in my response?
No, not without consent. Copying a represented party on an email is a communication governed by Rule 4.2, and the mere fact that opposing counsel copied their own client does not, by itself, imply con…
Can a South Carolina lawyer answer legal questions for pay on a site like JustAnswer.com?
Not on a site like JustAnswer.com. Its use of 'expert,' testimonials and endorsements without required disclaimers, and buried disclaimers that try to deny an attorney-client relationship while inviti…
At a magistrate's docket meeting, may a lawyer ask for a continuance on behalf of another lawyer who is absent, and may a lawyer move to dismiss cases for other lawyers who did not ask the lawyer to act?
A lawyer may appear to request a continuance for an absent lawyer who asked for the favor. A lawyer may not move to dismiss cases on behalf of other lawyers (or their non-client parties) without the l…
When a client wants to appeal but does not want the trial lawyer to handle the appeal, must the lawyer file the notice of appeal, and can a scope limitation in the retainer change that?
Under Rule 1.16(d) the lawyer must take reasonably practicable steps to protect the client's interests on termination. In a criminal matter the lawyer may be required to file the notice of appeal and …
When a real estate lawyer is a title insurance agent for two underwriters whose premiums differ, must the lawyer use the cheaper underwriter or disclose the price difference to the client?
The lawyer is not required to write the policy with the cheaper underwriter, but Rule 1.4 obligates the lawyer to disclose the premium difference and any other relevant differences so the client can m…
A lawyer drafts a custody-modification agreement for two divorced parents; before filing, one parent revokes consent while the other (who paid) insists on filing. May the lawyer file the pleadings?
No. Whether the lawyer has a conflict depends on whether an attorney-client relationship formed with the paying party, but either way the lawyer should not file the pleadings: if both are clients ther…
What are a lawyer's ethical duties when the lawyer suspects or knows a client is in the country illegally, and must the lawyer ask about a client's immigration status?
The duties are the same as for any client engaged in ongoing criminal activity. Rule 1.6 protects the client's confidential information, and because illegal entry is a past act and unlawful presence i…
When a lawyer and client have signed a discharge agreement but the court has not yet relieved the lawyer, must the lawyer still respond to discovery, depositions, and hearings?
Yes. Under Rule 1.16(c), a lawyer must have the tribunal's permission before terminating a representation, so until the court grants the motion to be relieved the lawyer must continue to provide compe…
Does a lawyer violate South Carolina Rule 4.5 by sending a bad-check collection notice that warns of possible criminal prosecution when state law requires that warning?
No. Although the statutory bad-check notice under S.C. Code 34-11-70 references possible criminal prosecution, the threat is not made solely to gain an advantage in a civil matter because the statute …
Must a real estate closing lawyer get the lender's or mortgage broker's written informed consent to represent multiple parties, and can the lawyer use an advance consent?
Only if the lender or broker is actually a client. If a client-attorney relationship exists, the lawyer must obtain the lender's informed consent confirmed in writing to multiple representation (or no…
Can a South Carolina lawyer conduct a real estate closing by mail without the client physically present?
Yes. The opinion concludes a lawyer may conduct a closing by mail if the attorney provides competent representation, keeps every aspect of the closing under attorney supervision, and gives the client …
What must a public defender do when assigned a caseload far larger than national standards recommend?
A public defender may not carry a caseload that forces violations of the duties of competence, diligence, and communication; national caseload numbers are a factor but not determinative, and a lawyer …
Can a law firm doing the title search in a real estate closing accept a share of the title insurance premium from the real estate company, on top of charging the client for the closing?
The committee concluded the arrangement does not violate Rule 5.4 and is permissible if the firm properly supervises the title work, charges no excessive or double fee under Rule 1.5, and fully disclo…
If a lawyer learns that opposing counsel got confidential help from the lawyer's own firm and breached a prior settlement's confidentiality clause, must the lawyer tell the client and report the other lawyers?
The committee concluded the lawyer must inform her client of the breach under Rule 1.4, and must report the firm lawyer who fed opposing counsel inside information (a Rule 1.6 and 1.8(b) violation) un…
If a lawyer learns that another lawyer he refers clients to is medically impaired and can no longer competently practice, must he report it and warn the referred clients?
Yes to both, with a confidentiality limit. The committee concluded that if the impaired lawyer's medical condition causes violations of Rules 1.1 and 1.16(a)(2) that raise a substantial question of fi…
Can a lawyer hold a free public seminar on a legal topic, with a Q&A session and individual consultations afterward?
The committee concluded that an attorney generally may conduct a free public seminar on a legal topic and provide general legal information to the public, subject to Rule 7.1 (no false or misleading c…
What must lawyers do when a client builds a litigation web page, without their knowledge, that names them and solicits other victims to come forward?
The committee concluded the lawyers must review the page and counsel the client about it; because using the page is a 'means' of the litigation, the decision is the lawyers' to make under Rule 1.2(a),…
Can a lawyer pass the credit card company's service fee on to clients who pay fees or retainers by credit card, and does it matter if the retainer is nonrefundable?
The committee concluded a lawyer may charge clients the actual credit-card service fee so long as the total fee is reasonable under Rule 1.5(a), the lawyer fully discloses the charges before billing t…
What can a lawyer do when, in a contingency case, the client cannot be located despite reasonable efforts and the client failed to provide updated contact information?
The committee concluded that if the lawyer has pursued all reasonable avenues to locate the client and the client cannot be found through the client's own fault, it is reasonable for the lawyer to tre…
When a lawyer leaves a firm and will not keep practicing, who must notify the clients she handled, and is the firm's failure to pay her wages an ethics issue?
The committee concluded the firm should send the promised notification and continue the representation, the departed lawyer should write clients herself if the firm does not, and the firm's unpaid-wag…
Can a South Carolina lawyer transmit confidential client communications by email over private, commercial, or Internet networks?
The committee concluded email carries a reasonable expectation of privacy and its use does not waive confidentiality under Rule 1.6, while noting a lawyer still owes reasonable care and may discuss op…
Can a South Carolina lawyer give a second opinion to someone the lawyer knows is represented by another lawyer in the same matter, without the first lawyer's consent?
The committee concluded a lawyer may discuss a pending matter and give a second opinion to a person represented by another lawyer without that lawyer's consent, but must qualify any opinion that requi…
Can a South Carolina law firm have clients pre-authorize charges to their credit cards for legal fees?
The committee concluded a credit card pre-authorization policy is not prohibited by the Rules, subject to Rule 1.5(b)'s requirement to communicate the basis or rate of the fee and Rule 1.5(a)'s requir…
Can a lawyer bill a client at an hourly rate for a secretary or file clerk's time just because the staffer earned a weekend paralegal certificate?
The committee concluded a lawyer may bill an agreed hourly rate for support-staff time if the client agrees in advance and the fee is not illegal, unconscionable, or misrepresentative; the lawyer must…
What must a lawyer do when subpoenaed to testify about a client's whereabouts in family court?
The committee concluded the lawyer should not voluntarily reveal the client's address, which is information relating to the representation under Rule 1.6, and must invoke the attorney-client privilege…
Can a South Carolina lawyer use a collection agency, report a client to a credit bureau, or run a credit check to handle unpaid legal fees?
The committee concluded a lawyer may use a collection agency for past-due fees and may run a credit check if the client's status is not revealed, but should not report a non-paying client to a credit …
When a firm lawyer can no longer do legal work, what must the firm do for that lawyer's clients before reassigning their matters?
The committee concluded that, even with a contract engaging the firm rather than a particular lawyer, the firm must inform the affected clients of the lawyer's condition and how their work will be han…
Can one attorney represent the buyer, seller, and lender together at a real estate closing?
The committee concluded an attorney may represent all three parties to a real estate closing if the role is purely ministerial, with no negotiation, no problem jeopardizing the closing, no party relyi…
Can a defense lawyer contact an unrepresented accident victim to offer restitution and forestall criminal charges against the client?
The committee concluded the lawyer may communicate with the victim, who is unrepresented because a state prosecutor does not represent a crime victim, subject to Rule 4.3's limits: disclosing his inte…
Can a lawyer advise a personal-injury client about, and help carry out, a company's purchase or assignment of part of the client's expected recovery?
The committee concluded that, assuming the financing is legal under South Carolina law, a lawyer may advise a client about it with candid disclosure of advantages and disadvantages under Rule 2.1, and…
Can a lawyer use a former client's confidential information to fight discharge of unpaid fees in the client's bankruptcy?
The committee concluded the lawyer may use public-record information and, under Rule 1.6(b)(2), confidential information obtained during the representation to establish a claim for unpaid fees in bank…
Can a lawyer pay a fact witness more than the statutory subpoena fee to cover lost wages, and what limits apply?
The committee did not decide when extra witness payments are allowed by law, but concluded that to the extent such compensation is legally permissible there is no ethical bar, and the lawyer may advan…
When a client tells the lawyer not to contact a health insurer with a possible subrogation claim, what must the lawyer still do?
The committee concluded the lawyer has no affirmative duty to notify the insurer of the tort action, but the duty of competence requires advising the client, before disbursing settlement funds, that t…
When opposing counsel won't respond, can a lawyer copy the represented party directly, or tell the client to contact the other party?
The committee concluded that Rule 4.2 bars a lawyer from copying a represented party on settlement letters, but the lawyer may advise the client that the client may contact the other party directly, s…
Can a lawyer who is also a defendant, or who is a title insurance agent, represent other defendants in the same mass land-claim suit?
The committee concluded that, where the defendants' objectives appear identical, a lawyer who is also a defendant, or who serves as a title insurance agent, may represent other defendants under Rule 1…
Can a South Carolina lawyer advise a client to secretly record a conversation, or recommend a company to supply the recording equipment?
The committee concluded that, depending on how one reads South Carolina case law (chiefly In re Warner), it may be unethical for a lawyer to instruct or equip a client to record a conversation secretl…
Can a lawyer advise a client to talk directly with an adverse party who has their own lawyer, without that lawyer's consent?
The committee concluded that Rule 4.2 restricts the lawyer's own contact, not the parties', so a lawyer may tell a client it is permissible to speak directly with a represented adverse party, as long …
Can a lawyer voluntarily disclose the identity of his clients and how much work he does for them, for instance in his own divorce discovery?
The committee concluded that client identity and the amount of work done for a client are information relating to the representation protected by Rule 1.6(a), so the lawyer may not voluntarily disclos…
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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.