West Virginia State Bar (Lawyer Disciplinary Board) Ethics Opinions
Free plain-English summaries of legal ethics opinions issued by the West Virginia State Bar (Lawyer Disciplinary Board), with full citations and source links on every page.
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Can a West Virginia lawyer use artificial intelligence, including generative AI, in a law practice?
Yes. Nothing in the West Virginia Rules of Professional Conduct prohibits using AI as a tool, but the lawyer's duties of competence, diligence, communication, confidentiality, and supervision still ap…
Can a West Virginia lawyer pay a fact witness for the time the witness spends testifying or preparing to testify?
A lawyer may pay a fact witness reasonable compensation for time lost preparing for testimony and being interviewed, but not for attending court or a deposition beyond the statutory witness fee, and n…
Can a West Virginia lawyer who was appointed to represent an indigent defendant later be paid by the client or by a third party and become privately retained counsel?
Sometimes, on an ad hoc basis. The opinion concludes appointed counsel may become privately retained if the lawyer first discloses the change to the court, is released from the appointment, and never …
What must a criminal defense lawyer do when the client tells the lawyer about, or hands over, the fruits or instrumentalities of a crime?
The opinion gives a balancing framework, not a bright-line rule: a lawyer may not conceal, destroy, or alter physical evidence; what a client says about it is privileged, but the items themselves are …
Can a court-appointed criminal defense lawyer accept additional payment from the client's family on top of the statutory fee for appointed counsel?
LEI 83-5, a disciplinary ruling, concluded that the statutory fee for court-appointed counsel is the lawyer's exclusive compensation; a lawyer may not accept additional payment from the defendant or t…
What must a West Virginia lawyer do after learning that the clients committed fraud on a tribunal through false income testimony?
LEI 78-19 concluded the lawyer should promptly withdraw from the representation and, if the clients refuse to rectify the fraud, reveal it to the affected tribunal. The Committee held that any conflic…
If a third party (not the client) tries to bribe the complaining witness in a criminal case, must the appointed defense lawyer reveal it to the court?
LEI 78-15 concluded that a non-client third party's attempt to bribe the witness was not privileged information, and the lawyer, as an officer of the court, had to promptly reveal the resulting fraud …
Must a criminal defense lawyer tell the court or prosecutor that his clients were never arraigned, when staying silent could bar a retrial?
LEI 78-4 concluded that defense counsel was under no duty to point out to the court or prosecutor that his clients had not been arraigned; he could remain silent, but he could not deliberately induce …
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Legal ethics opinions from the West Virginia State Bar (Lawyer Disciplinary Board) 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.