State Bar of Wisconsin Ethics Opinions
Free plain-English summaries of legal ethics opinions issued by the State Bar of Wisconsin, with full citations and source links on every page.
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Can a lawyer who also owns a financial-planning business advertise her law practice there and offer legal services to that business's clients?
She may mention her law practice in the side business's marketing if it meets SCR 20:7.1 and 7.2, but SCR 20:7.3(a) bars her from offering legal services in person to that business's clients; she may …
Can a lawyer represent someone who decides to hire the lawyer after attending the lawyer's seminar presentation?
The opinion concluded that yes, a lawyer may accept as a client a person who chooses to consult the lawyer as a result of attending the lawyer's presentation at a seminar or other educational or clien…
Can a law firm mail written invitations to a law-office open house to local business owners it has no prior relationship with?
The opinion concluded that yes, a firm may send written invitations to a law-office open house to members of the public, including neighboring business owners. Relying on Shapero v. Kentucky Bar Assoc…
Can a personal injury lawyer's direct-mail letter say the lawyer can suggest health-care providers to accident victims who have no treating doctor?
The opinion concluded that such advertising is misleading without a caveat. Telling accident victims by targeted direct mail that the lawyer 'can suggest various health-care providers' is misleading u…
Can a lawyer pay a community greeting service like Welcome Wagon to advertise the lawyer's practice to new residents?
The opinion concluded that lawyers may use Welcome Wagon services to advertise their practices, subject to compliance with the advertising rules SCR 20:7.1 through 20:7.5, and provided the service onl…
In a private adoption, can a lawyer advertise for birth mothers, broker the match between birth and adoptive parents, and represent only the adoptive parents?
The opinion concluded that whether a lawyer may solicit or advertise for birth mothers the lawyer will not represent first depends on whether that conduct is legal under Wisconsin law, and if legal, t…
May a Wisconsin lawyer accept referrals from a for-profit lawyer referral service to which the lawyer pays a fee or gives something of value?
The opinion concluded that under the former Code a lawyer could not accept referrals from a profit-making referral service to which the lawyer paid any fee or gave anything of value for the referral. …
Can a law firm mail a letter describing its practice areas to union members in a geographic area, and may it call those practice areas its specialties?
The opinion concluded that general direct-mail advertising to a geographic group is permissible if the letter is not false, misleading, deceptive, or unfair and is not tailored to recipients with an i…
After mailing a prospective client an advertising letter or brochure, can a lawyer follow up with a phone call to that person?
The opinion concluded that such follow-up calls are improper, because Wis. Stat. sec. 757.295 prohibits solicitation of legal business and the Wisconsin Supreme Court required attorneys to avoid solic…
Can an organization that is not a party to a class action pay the litigation expenses if it shares in no recovery?
The opinion concluded that a nonparty organization may fund the litigation expenses of a class action, provided none of the contributed funds compensate the attorneys representing the class and the ac…
Can lawyers advertise to find plaintiffs for a class action or other lawsuit?
The opinion concluded that yes, attorneys may advertise for clients in a class action or other lawsuit, so long as the advertising is not false, misleading, deceptive, or unfair under SCR 20.08(7).
After speaking at a seminar, can a lawyer send a follow-up letter to attendees who asked the sponsor for more information?
The opinion concluded that sending such a letter would be improper solicitation, because it amounts to recommending the lawyer's own employment to nonlawyers who did not seek the lawyer's advice.
Can lawyers own an outside business such as a collection agency while practicing law, and can their firm accept referrals from that business?
The opinion concluded that owning a collection agency is not prohibited per se, but accepting referrals from it is governed by the solicitation and barratry rules and may often result in a violation.
Can a law firm publish a newsletter of general legal information and mail it to clients and acquaintances under the firm's name?
The opinion concluded that a firm may publish and distribute such a newsletter, with the firm's name listed, provided it helps readers recognize legal problems, is not misleading, and does not appear …
Can a law firm present its own public legal seminars without a bank or other institution as sponsor?
The opinion concluded that a firm may present public seminars if the lawyers are motivated to educate the public rather than to obtain employment, with the conduct judged objectively after the seminar…
Can a lawyer write and publish an 'Ask the Lawyer' newspaper column?
The opinion concluded that a lawyer may prepare and disseminate an 'Ask the Lawyer' column, within limits: the column must not give individual legal advice or appear to solve individual problems, the …
Can a bank recommend a particular estate-planning attorney to its customers, where the attorney's referrals benefit the bank?
The opinion concluded that the arrangement was improper solicitation. A bank may not recommend a particular attorney's estate-planning services to its customers when the bank receives a benefit, becau…
Can a law firm send its clients a private letter offering to match their charitable gifts to an educational institution?
The opinion concluded that it could. A law firm's private letter offering, with a limit, to match clients' gifts to an educational institution violated no provision of the Code of Professional Respons…
Can a lawyer draft a long-time client's will and trust that names the lawyer's own firm as executor, co-trustee, and counsel for the estate?
The opinion concluded that, on these facts, the lawyer could. Where a client, because of the lawyer's exceptional familiarity with his business and family, asks the lawyer to draft the instruments and…
Can a lawyer who wins a case invite the jurors to a celebratory party, or encourage the client to do so?
The opinion concluded that the lawyer should not participate in any such celebration and should actively counsel against inviting the jury, because post-trial contact with jurors and the appearance th…
Can lawyers (here, law professors) operate a for-profit legal research service for other attorneys and announce it by mail and bar-journal advertising?
The opinion concluded that the service could be operated with ethical propriety if proper safeguards were observed. A lawyer may announce availability to serve other lawyers in a branch of law, but th…
Can a law firm send other lawyers an announcement that it is available to consult in labor law and that it has 19 years of experience in the field?
The opinion concluded that the firm could distribute a dignified announcement of availability to consult or associate in a branch of law, but the announcement could not claim special competence or exp…
After drafting a client's will, can the lawyer keep the original in safekeeping, or must it go to the client?
The opinion concluded, following the Wisconsin Supreme Court's Gulbankian decision, that the correct practice is to deliver the original will to the testator; a lawyer should keep it only on the clien…
Can a collection lawyer give creditor-clients pre-printed forms with his name on them to send to debtors threatening to put the matter in his hands?
The opinion concluded that the arrangement would violate professional ethics. It denies the lawyer personal judgment over accepting employment, aids the unauthorized practice of law, amounts to solici…
Can a lawyer maintain and disburse a bail fund for people charged with crimes, even non-clients?
The opinion concluded the lawyer cannot. Running such a fund would do indirectly what the statute barring an attorney from acting as bail forbids directly, would place the lawyer in the bail bond busi…
Can a lawyer use insurance agents to solicit clients for a master pension plan the lawyer's firm would handle?
The opinion concluded that the solicitation activities of insurance agents acting on the lawyer's behalf to promote the master pension plan were improper under Canon 27 and had to be terminated.
Can a lawyer partner with a non-lawyer to provide labor-management or business consulting when some of the work is legal work?
The opinion concluded that because part of the proposed labor-management work would constitute law practice, Canon 33 made a partnership between the lawyer and a non-lawyer unethical, and Canon 27 lim…
Can a lawyer take suits referred by a lay collection agency where the agency pays the lawyer, uses his name, and controls the litigation?
The opinion concluded the lawyer cannot. An attorney may not accept employment from a lay collection agency to litigate the agency's customers' claims where the agency pays or divides fees, controls t…
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Legal ethics opinions from the State Bar of Wisconsin 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.