Utah State Bar Ethics Advisory Opinion Committee Ethics Opinions
Free plain-English summaries of legal ethics opinions issued by the Utah State Bar Ethics Advisory Opinion Committee, with full citations and source links on every page.
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Can a lawyer give a deceased client's will, trust, or estate-planning work product to the heirs or beneficiaries when the trustee or executor will not?
Yes, within limits. The opinion concludes a lawyer may provide a deceased client's estate planning documents, and related work product, to beneficiaries or heirs when the trustee or executor has not, …
Can a defense lawyer in Utah contact a plaintiff's treating physician ex parte, outside formal discovery?
No. The opinion formally withdraws Advisory Opinion 99-03, noting that the Utah Supreme Court in Sorensen v. Barbuto vacated 99-03 and instructed lawyers to confine contact with an adversary's treatin…
Can a Utah lawyer reveal a client's identity, who is paying the fee, or the terms of the fee agreement?
Generally no. The opinion concludes that under Rule 1.6 a client's identity, the source of the fee, and the terms of the fee agreement are confidential by default, disclosable only with informed conse…
If a Utah lawyer is hired by another law firm to consult on a narrow area of law using only hypotheticals, does the lawyer take on a client-lawyer relationship or a duty of confidentiality?
The opinion concludes the consultation alone does not create a client-lawyer relationship between the consulted lawyer and the consulting firm's client, but the consulted lawyer may acquire a duty of …
Can a lawyer interview a former control-group employee of an adverse corporation without opposing counsel's consent?
Yes, but with limits. The opinion concludes a lawyer may contact a former control-group employee of an adverse party under Rule 4.2, but may not ask about anything covered by the attorney-client privi…
Can a Utah lawyer report an internet 'client' who turns out to be running a counterfeit-check scam against the lawyer?
Yes. The opinion concludes that someone who contacts a lawyer only to defraud the lawyer (the classic counterfeit-check collection scam) is not a client or prospective client owed confidentiality unde…
A client with diminished capacity wants to appeal but refuses to sign the Notice of Appeal the statute requires, so the appeal will be dismissed. What should the lawyer do?
The opinion concludes that under Rule 1.14, if the lawyer believes the client is at risk of substantial harm and cannot adequately act in her own interest, the lawyer should take reasonable protective…
Can a Utah lawyer set up or borrow from a lending company to finance a client's case or pay the lawyer's own fees?
No to both arrangements presented. A lawyer may not run a lending company that loans money to the lawyer's own clients to cover fees, because the lawyer's loyalty to the lender conflicts non-consentab…
Does a lawyer owe confidentiality to someone interviewed as a prospective client who is never retained, and can that interview disqualify the lawyer's firm?
Yes. The opinion concludes confidentiality usually attaches when a prospective client consults a lawyer in contemplation of retention, even if the lawyer is never retained and gives no advice; Rules 1…
At sentencing, if the judge asks defense counsel about the client's prior convictions, can the lawyer answer?
Only with the client's informed consent. Otherwise, defense counsel must respectfully decline to answer in a way that does not mislead the court, because information about the client's prior convictio…
If a former client claims the lawyer's advice confused him, can the subpoenaed lawyer testify about their privileged discussions to prevent a fraud on the court or clear the lawyer's name?
No. Absent a court order, a subpoenaed lawyer may not divulge any attorney-client information, either to the prosecution or in open court, even though the former client has attacked the lawyer's advic…
A plaintiff's lawyer learns, while representing a client, that a health-care provider she works with regularly is billing for services never rendered. Can she warn other clients or report the provider?
Not without the client's consent. What the lawyer learned in the representation is confidential under Rule 1.6, so she may not reveal it or report the provider's fraud to insurers or law enforcement w…
Can a lawyer cross-examine a former client as an adverse witness while representing a current client?
Generally yes, if the prior and current matters are not substantially factually related and the lawyer does not use or disclose the former client's confidential information to that client's disadvanta…
What must a lawyer do when a client unexpectedly lies to or misleads the court, whether or not the client is under oath?
Counsel who knows a client has materially misled the court may not stay silent and keep representing the client; that is assisting a fraud on the court under Rule 3.3(a)(2). Counsel must first remonst…
Can a lawyer send a client's confidential information by ordinary unencrypted email without violating the duty of confidentiality?
Yes. In ordinary circumstances a lawyer may use unencrypted Internet email to transmit confidential client information, because there is a reasonable expectation of privacy in its use; particularly se…
Can a defense lawyer contact the plaintiff's treating physician ex parte (without plaintiff's counsel present) when the plaintiff's physical condition is at issue?
Withdrawn. At the time, the Committee concluded no ethical rule prohibited ex parte contact with a plaintiff's treating physician who is not separately represented; the Utah Supreme Court vacated this…
What must a Utah lawyer do after lawfully obtaining an opposing party's privileged communication?
The opinion concluded the lawyer must notify opposing counsel of the receipt unless it is clear the attorney-client privilege was intentionally waived, grounding the duty in Rule 8.4(d).
Can a lawyer hired by an insurance company to defend an insured send detailed billing statements to the insurer's outside audit service?
Only with the insured client's informed consent. A detailed billing statement is information relating to the representation under Rule 1.6, so before sending it to an outside auditor the lawyer must o…
Can a Utah lawyer accept credit cards for legal fees and costs?
Yes. The opinion concluded lawyers may accept payment by credit card like other merchants, overruling the earlier Opinion 21, subject to ordinary duties such as safekeeping advance payments and protec…
Can a law firm sell or give its client list (names, addresses, and phone numbers) to securities brokers, financial planners, or insurance agents without the clients' consent?
No. A client's name, address, and telephone number obtained through the representation are confidential under Rule 1.6, so the firm may not furnish a client list to third parties, with or without a fe…
If an accused person calls a lawyer for help turning himself in, can the lawyer give police the client's phone number or whereabouts?
No. Information an accused gives a lawyer in an initial telephone conference, where the lawyer agrees to represent him, is confidential under Rule 1.6, even against a request from law enforcement seek…
What are a Utah lawyer's duties when the lawyer cannot communicate with a client in a language the client understands?
The lawyer need not personally speak the client's language but must communicate adequately, which the opinion said may require a skilled interpreter, with care taken so the interpreter does not give i…
Browse Utah State Bar Ethics Advisory Opinion Committee opinions by topic
Legal ethics opinions from the Utah State Bar Ethics Advisory Opinion Committee 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.