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 borrow from a third-party lender to advance litigation costs in a contingent-fee case, and pass the loan's interest and costs on to the client?
Yes, with conditions. The Board concludes the Rules of Professional Conduct do not bar a lawyer from borrowing from a third-party lender to fund litigation costs, and the actual interest and costs may…
Can a plaintiff's lawyer in West Virginia personally agree, as a condition of settlement, to indemnify and hold the defendant harmless from third-party claims or liens on the settlement funds, and can defense counsel demand it?
No. The Board concludes a lawyer's personal agreement to indemnify and hold the opposing party harmless from third-party claims or liens violates Rules 1.8(e) and 1.7(b), and defense counsel who propo…
How long must a West Virginia lawyer keep a former client's closed file, and how can the lawyer destroy it without violating the duty to safeguard client property?
The file is the client's property. The opinion concludes a lawyer should either return a closed file to the client or keep it at least five years after the representation ends (longer for some matters…
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 lawyer refuse to file or finalize a client's divorce decree until the client pays the legal fees that are owed?
LEI 84-4 concluded that a lawyer may not ethically delay completing a divorce action, such as refusing to file the final divorce decree, because the fee is unpaid; that refusal violates DR 5-101(A), D…
Can a lawyer draft a will for a client that names the lawyer as a beneficiary or executor, where the client wants the lawyer to inherit?
LEI 83-3 concluded that a lawyer should not prepare a will naming himself as beneficiary or grantee; the respondent who drafted a will leaving himself substantial real estate, without advising the cli…
When a lawyer agrees to 'protect' a treating doctor's fees out of a personal-injury client's recovery, what are the lawyer's duties, and may the lawyer charge the doctor a collection fee?
LEI 82-5, a disciplinary ruling, concluded that a lawyer may withhold and pay a treating doctor's fees from a client's recovery if the client authorizes it, but the lawyer represents the client and no…
What should a lawyer do with settlement funds he is holding for clients he cannot locate, and when can he deduct his fee?
LEI 78-6 concluded that a lawyer holding settlement funds for clients he could not locate should renegotiate the stale checks, hold all the funds in a separate interest-bearing trust account naming hi…
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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.