What are a lawyer's duties when a client stops staying in contact or disappears?
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This page answers the general question as of 2000. 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 inquiring lawyer asked what ethical duties a lawyer owes toward a client who fails to maintain contact with the lawyer.
The committee stated that the lawyer may not settle the client's claim without specific authority from the client. The lawyer should use due diligence to try to locate the client, and if the client remains missing, the lawyer may withdraw as the attorney of record under RPC 1.15(b)(5) and (6).
Currency note
This opinion was issued in 2000, 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 Treat this page as historical context, not current guidance.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 former RPC 1.15 (declining or terminating representation, cited here at subsections (b)(5) and (6)) corresponds to ABA Model Rule 1.16 and was renumbered RPC 1.16 in Washington's 2006 revisions; confirm the current rule and citation before relying on it.
Common questions
Q: Can a lawyer settle a case for a client who has gone missing?
A: Per the committee, no. The lawyer may not settle the client's claim without specific authority from the client.
Q: What should the lawyer do to find the client?
A: The committee said the lawyer should use due diligence to try to locate the client before taking further steps.
Q: Can the lawyer get out of the case if the client stays missing?
A: Yes. If the client remains missing, the committee said the lawyer may withdraw as attorney of record under RPC 1.15(b)(5) and (6).
Background and rules framework
The opinion applied RPC 1.15(b)(5) and (6) (the then-current Washington rule on declining or terminating representation, corresponding to ABA Model Rule 1.16). The committee tied the lawyer's options for a missing or out-of-contact client to those withdrawal provisions, while making clear that settling the claim required the client's specific authority and that the lawyer should first try diligently to locate the client.
Citations and references
Rules of Professional Conduct:
- ABA Model Rule 1.16 (declining or terminating representation); Washington RPC 1.15(b)(5), 1.15(b)(6)
See also
- WSBA Ethics Op. 954: When a Client Vanishes Mid-Case
- WSBA Ethics Op. 1796: A Missing Client in a Divorce Case
- WSBA Ethics Op. 1899: Missing Client, Filing Deadline
Source
- Landing page: https://ao.wsba.org/print.aspx?ID=1160
Original opinion text
Reproduced from the official source for research purposes. The linked source is authoritative.
Advisory Opinion: 1920
Year Issued: 2000
RPC(s): RPC 1.15(b)(5); 1.15(b)(6)
Subject: Client that fails to maintain contact with lawyer; client that disappears
The inquiring lawyer asks what are the ethical duties of a lawyer toward a client that fails to maintain contact with the lawyer. The committee stated that the lawyer may not settle the client’s claim without specific authority from the client. The lawyer should use due diligence to try to locate the client and, if the client remains missing, the lawyer may withdraw as the attorney of record per RPC 1.15(b)(5) and (6).
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