Can a plaintiff's lawyer sign a hold-harmless agreement, as a settlement condition, that pledges the lawyer's credit to repay the client's non-litigation expenses?
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This page answers the general question as of 1997. Ezel answers yours: whether it's allowed on your facts, under the current rules of professional conduct in your state, with citations.
Plain-English summary
The inquiry concerned the ethical propriety of a plaintiff's attorney signing a hold-harmless agreement as a condition of settlement. The committee, responding through the Rules of Professional Conduct Committee, concluded that it is a violation of RPC 1.8(e) for an attorney to sign a hold-harmless agreement to repay the client's non-litigation expenses that pledges the attorney's credit.
The committee added that the attorney should convey to the client that the attorney will not be signing such an agreement.
Currency note
This opinion was issued in 1997, before the Washington State Bar Association's adoption of the 2006 revisions to the Rules of Professional Conduct. 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 Treat this page as historical context, not current guidance.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. Washington's cited rule corresponds to ABA Model Rule 1.8 (current-client conflicts; specific rules), and subsection (e) addresses a lawyer's financial assistance to a client.
Common questions
Q: Can a lawyer sign a settlement hold-harmless agreement that pledges the lawyer's own credit for the client's non-litigation expenses?
A: The committee concluded that doing so violates RPC 1.8(e).
Q: What did the committee say the lawyer should do?
A: The committee said the attorney should convey to the client that the attorney will not be signing such an agreement.
Background and rules framework
The opinion applied RPC 1.8(e), corresponding to ABA Model Rule 1.8(e), which governs a lawyer's financial assistance to a client. The committee treated an attorney's pledge of the attorney's own credit to repay the client's non-litigation expenses, made as a condition of settlement, as the kind of financial assistance the rule prohibits.
Citations and references
Rules of Professional Conduct:
- ABA Model Rule 1.8 (conflict of interest: current clients; specific rules), subsection (e) (financial assistance to a client); Washington RPC 1.8(e)
See also
- WSBA Ethics Op. 1162: Advancing Funds After Settlement
- WSBA Ethics Op. 1145: Guaranteeing a Settlement
Source
- Landing page: https://ao.wsba.org/print.aspx?ID=916
Original opinion text
Reproduced from the official source for research purposes. The linked source is authoritative.
Advisory Opinion: 1736
Year Issued: 1997
RPC(s): RPC 1.8(e)
Subject: Hold harmless agreement pledging lawyer's credit for client's non-litigation expenses
I have been instructed by the Rules of Professional Conduct Committee to respond to your inquiry regarding the ethical propriety of a plaintiff's attorney signing a hold harmless agreement as a condition of settlement as follows: It is a violation of RPC 1.8(e) for an attorney to sign a hold harmless agreement to repay the client's non-litigation expenses which pledges the attorney's credit, and the attorney should convey to the client that the attorney will not be signing such an agreement..
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