Can a lawyer who serves as a city alderman defend criminal cases in his own city's city court?

Plain-English summary

The inquiry asked whether a lawyer who is a city alderman could represent clients charged with crimes in the city court of his city.

The Committee unanimously concluded that it would violate Canon 6 for a city alderman to accept employment in criminal cases before the city court (10-0).

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 1953, under the former Texas Canons of Ethics, which the Texas Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct replaced effective January 1, 1990. Conflicts between public office and private representation are now governed by Texas Disciplinary Rule 1.06 and ABA Model Rule 1.7. Subsequent rule amendments or later opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current guidance. Verify against current rules before relying on any specific rule, deadline, or requirement mentioned here.

Common questions

Q: Could a city alderman defend criminal cases in his own city's court?

A: No. The Committee held unanimously that doing so would violate Canon 6 (10-0).

Q: What was the conflict the opinion identified?

A: The opinion treated the alderman's public role and his private criminal-defense work before the city's own court as conflicting interests under Canon 6.

Background and rules framework

The opinion interprets former Texas Canon 6 (representing conflicting interests), applied to a lawyer holding the office of city alderman who wished to defend criminal cases in the city court. The modern analog is ABA Model Rule 1.7 (concurrent conflicts of interest).

Citations and references

Rules of Professional Conduct:

• MR 1.7 (concurrent conflicts of interest), as the modern analog
• Texas Canon 6 (conflicting interests)

See also

• TX Ethics Op. 108: City Judge Appearing Before the City Council
• TX Ethics Op. 116: City Judge in a Law Firm
• TX Ethics Op. 100: Advocate When a Partner Had Been the Judge

Source

• Landing page: https://www.legalethicstexas.com/resources/opinions/opinion-82/
• Original PDF: https://tcle-web.s3.amazonaws.com/public/documents/Opinion_82.pdf

Original opinion text

Reproduced from the official source for research purposes. The linked source is authoritative.

QUESTION PRESENTED

Would it be a violation of the Canons of Ethics for an attorney who is a city alderman to represent clients charged with crimes in the city court of his city?

18 Baylor L. Rev. 230 (1966)

CONFLICTING INTERESTS - EMPLOYMENT - CITY ALDERMAN
An attorney who is a city alderman may not accept employment in criminal cases before the city court of his city.

Canon 6.

The members of the committee are unanimously of the opinion that it would be a violation of Canon 6 for a city alderman to accept employment in criminal cases before the city court. (10-0)

Tex. Comm. On Professional Ethics, Op. 82 (1953)