Legal Ethics Opinions
Free state and local bar legal ethics opinions with plain-English summaries, full citations, and source links on every page.
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Can a lawyer be a director, stockholder, and legal advisor of a corporation that provides condominium-development consulting using lawyers and real estate brokers?
The committee concluded that violation of one or more Canons is probable and, as to unauthorized practice, inevitable, because the lawyer's firm would draw client work through the service, the service…
Can a lawyer who counseled a husband and his second wife about their failing marriage later represent the wife in a divorce against the husband?
The Committee concluded he may not. Having counseled the husband and likely received his confidences while trying to save the marriage, the lawyer could not represent the second wife against him, and …
Can a lawyer who takes over a dissolved firm's practice call himself 'successor to' that firm on his letterhead and notify the firm's old clients?
The Committee concluded the plan was improper. The phrase 'successor to' constituted solicitation barred by Canon 27, and because the firm had dissolved, its name could not be carried on by an individ…
Can a lawyer who is also a CPA say so on his cards, stationery, or office window, and may he practice law and accounting at the same time?
The Committee concluded that stating 'CPA' on cards, stationery, or office window was improper advertising under Canon 27, but that practicing law and accounting at the same time was not, per se, a vi…
Can a lawyer planning to run for public office hand out campaign cards showing only his name and city, with no mention that he is a lawyer?
Yes. The committee found no Canon violation in a lawyer-candidate distributing cards bearing only his name and city, with no reference to his profession, provided the cards are not used to solicit leg…
Can a lawyer accept and keep a commission or rebate from an insurer, abstractor, or lender connected to a client's matter?
The opinion concluded a lawyer may accept no compensation, commission, rebate, or other advantage from others without the client's knowledge and consent after full disclosure, and even when disclosed,…
Can an assistant county attorney who handles the county's eminent-domain cases also privately represent property owners in condemnation cases the county is not part of?
The Committee concluded that, on the facts assumed, an assistant county attorney who handles the county's eminent-domain matters may also privately represent property owners in condemnation cases in w…
Can one attorney represent both a city and a school district in the same delinquent-tax suit?
The Committee concluded that one attorney representing two taxing agencies in a delinquent-tax suit is not a per se violation of Canon 6, because such dual representation does not necessarily involve …
Can a lawyer who once represented the wife in a dismissed divorce later represent the husband in a new divorce against her?
The Committee concluded that an attorney who represented the wife in a prior divorce action that was dismissed on reconciliation cannot ethically represent the husband in a later divorce suit against …
Can a lawyer and a non-lawyer who serve as co-executors split the statutory executor's commission?
The Committee concluded that a lawyer and a non-lawyer serving as co-executors may divide the statutory executor's commission without violating Canon 31, so long as the lawyer's fee for legal services…
Can a Texas lawyer charge a contingent fee in a divorce case based on the property awarded to the client?
The Committee concluded that a written contingent-fee contract in a divorce case is not unethical in Texas, so long as Texas courts recognize such contracts as valid and the fee is not unreasonable; t…
Can a lawyer put degree and certification initials like B.B.A., LL.B., and C.P.A. after his name on his letterhead?
The Committee concluded that a lawyer may not list "B.B.A., LL.B., C.P.A." on his professional letterhead, because that use is self-laudatory and holds him out as having special talents or qualificati…
Can a lawyer who is also a title-insurance agent hand out earnest-money contract forms branded with the title company and his name as agent?
The Committee concluded that a practicing lawyer who is also a title-insurance agent may not distribute to real estate agents earnest-money contract forms bearing a legend that the form is furnished b…
Can a registered U.S. Patent Attorney who is also a Texas lawyer advertise that specialty on his letterhead and in directories?
The Committee concluded that a registered U.S. Patent Attorney may hold himself out as a Patent Attorney in directories and the like to the extent his federal patent license permits, if he limits his …
Can a firm that represented both co-executors take one of them against the other once they disagree about settling the estate?
The Committee concluded that a law firm that represented both co-executors in the estate proceeding may not, when their interests diverge over settlement and distribution, represent one of them agains…
Can a firm keep a deceased partner's name in its firm name and on its letterhead, and for how long?
The Committee concluded that a firm may keep a deceased partner's name in its firm name and letterhead, with a suitable indication that the partner is deceased, if it accords with local custom and wor…
Can a lawyer run a Texas Bar Journal notice advertising that he handles "European claims"?
By a 6-3 vote the Committee concluded that a lawyer may not place a Texas Bar Journal notice that he handles European claims, because the majority found the Canon 42 exception applies only when the se…
Can a lawyer add the words "General Practice" to the sign on his office door?
The Committee concluded that a lawyer may not include the descriptive words "General Practice" on his office-door sign; a shingle should simply identify the person as an attorney without describing th…
Can a Texas law firm put a decorative emblem, like the goddess of justice holding the scales, on its letterhead?
The Committee concluded that an emblem on a lawyer's letterhead that is not self-laudatory and not calculated to solicit work is not forbidden by any canon, so it does not violate Canon 24; but the Co…
Can a lawyer let a business client identify him as the company's attorney in the company's newspaper advertisement?
The Committee concluded that a lawyer should not permit a savings institution, an automobile dealer, or a small loan company to identify him as its attorney in a newspaper advertisement, because such …
Can a lawyer whose office is hard to find put a directional sign a block away pointing to the office, and may it also name the lawyer's notary-public spouse?
The Committee concluded that both proposed signs would be unethical; a shingle belongs at the lawyer's office, not elsewhere, and adding the spouse's name, another profession, and "Notary Public" only…
Can a county's delinquent-tax attorney also represent one of the defendant landowners in the same tax-foreclosure matter, even with everyone's consent after full disclosure?
The Committee concluded that he may not; Canon 6 lets a lawyer represent conflicting interests only with consent after full disclosure, but it does not let one lawyer represent both a plaintiff and a …
Can a lawyer who drafts a will include a clause stating that the will was executed in duplicate originals and that the drafting attorney keeps one?
The Committee concluded that including such a clause violates Canon 24; it serves no legitimate purpose and the most likely reason for it is to solicit the probate of the estate.
Can a creditor's lawyer send a debtor a collection letter that offers settlement, truthfully says suit will be filed immediately, and encloses a copy of a petition prepared for filing?
The Committee concluded that the letter is not unethical, so long as its statements are true; Canon 9 would be violated only if a false statement, knowingly made, misled the unrepresented debtor.
Can a prosecutor write to the jurors after an acquittal to tell them about the defendant's record and the evidence the law kept out?
The Committee concluded that the letter was improper under Canon 29; writing jurors to suggest the law unjustifiably withheld relevant evidence, and to present excluded matter about the defendant's ch…
Can a lawyer be listed under an 'Attorneys' classification in a chamber of commerce business guide, or pay for a special listing in a city directory?
The Committee concluded that a lawyer should not permit his name in the classified 'Attorneys - Legal Services' listing of a chamber of commerce business guide, and should not pay a city directory for…
Can a lawyer building an appellate-only practice mail announcements of that fact to other lawyers and place a notice in the New Jersey Law Journal?
The Committee concluded he could place a notice in the New Jersey Law Journal limited as Canon 46 prescribes, but could not mail announcements to other lawyers.
Can a town's 'Corporation Legislative Counsel,' who advises the council on ordinances, handle tax appeals, negligence suits, and other cases against the same municipality?
The Committee concluded he may not. As an employee whose client is in effect the entire municipality, the Corporation Legislative Counsel cannot handle cases of any nature against the municipality he …
Can the counsel to a city housing authority appear for private clients before that city's board of adjustment, planning board, or other agencies?
The Committee concluded they cannot. Counsel to a city housing authority has the entire municipality as his client, so he may not appear for private clients before the city's board of adjustment, plan…
Can a New Jersey lawyer list other-state bar memberships or professional certificates in a yellow-pages telephone directory listing?
No. The Committee concluded that any yellow-pages listing that departs from the plain, uniform listing of lawyers, including one showing other bar memberships or certificates, is improper advertising.
Can a lawyer who sits on a municipal zoning board of adjustment, or a member of that lawyer's firm, represent private clients before the same town's boards and governing body?
No. The Committee concluded that neither the zoning-board member nor any member of the lawyer's firm may appear for private clients before the municipality's planning board, zoning board, or governing…
Can a lawyer accept retainers from a group of homeowners who were solicited as a class, when only one of them originally sought the lawyer's advice?
No. The Committee concluded the lawyer should not accept retainers from the solicited claimants, because soliciting strangers in the same class as an existing client improperly stirs up litigation; th…
Can a municipal prosecutor who was excused from a disorderly-persons case involving a client and the client's wife later prepare a separation agreement for that client?
Yes. The Committee concluded the later representation was not a violation, because the prosecutor had no personal connection with the investigation or prosecution of the disorderly-persons case and ha…
Can a lawyer who approved a sales agreement for a buyer later represent the seller in suing that buyer for default under the same agreement?
No. The Committee concluded it is improper, because the representation might require the lawyer to assert a claim under the very agreement he approved for the former client, and a lawyer should not at…
Can a lawyer who works for a state agency be assigned to represent an indigent criminal defendant, or must he be excused because he is a state employee?
He may serve. The Committee concluded there is no impropriety or conflict merely because the assigned attorney is a state employee, except where the charged crime involves the State itself, in which c…
Can members of a law firm jointly donate to a community hospital and have their names placed on a donor plaque without it being improper advertising?
Yes. The Committee concluded a joint gift with the donors' names on a plaque is not improper, because they give as individual members of the community, not as attorneys, where the plaque does not iden…
Can a lawyer give a former client's information and a substitution of attorney to another lawyer without the former client's consent?
No. The Committee concluded the former lawyer may not furnish the requested information or give the substitution without informing the former client and obtaining his consent, because the matters may …
Can a lawyer organize an association of bank attorneys and send a letter inviting interested lawyers to join?
Yes. The committee found no ethics problem in organizing an association of bank attorneys and nothing improper in circulating a proposed letter to lawyers who might be interested.
Can an assistant city attorney prosecute someone a law partner once represented, where that representation ended before the partnership formed?
Yes. The committee found no Canon violation, and indeed a duty to prosecute, where no firm member currently represents the person, none has for about a year, and the partner's earlier representation p…
When a reporter names and quotes a lawyer about a case he is handling, is the lawyer responsible for the publicity, and what must he do?
The committee concluded that if lawyers knew their names and descriptions would be used in newspaper articles about their cases, the conduct violated Canon 27's bar on indirect advertising, and that a…
May a former prosecutor who resisted a defendant's insanity defense later represent that defendant, in private practice, in a proceeding to be restored to competency?
No. The committee concluded that Canon 36 bars a lawyer who held public office from later taking employment connected with a matter he investigated or passed on while in office, and that the former pr…
Can a lawyer let his name or his firm's name be printed on the business card of an investigator who works on the firm's cases?
No. The Committee concluded it is improper, because the card could lead to abuses and could be taken as a representation that a layman is associated in the practice of law.
Can a lawyer keep a percentage or rebate paid by a title insurance company on the client's transaction?
Only with the client's consent after full disclosure. The Committee concluded the lawyer may keep a title-insurance rebate if the client consents after full disclosure; if the client refuses, the reba…
Can an attorney who also serves as a municipal clerk represent defendants in that municipality's municipal court?
No. The Committee concluded it is improper, applying the same principle that bars a member of a municipal governing body from practicing before its municipal court, because the clerk is identified in …
Can a lawyer who serves as a court's probate commissioner and occasional judge pro tem represent clients before that same court?
No. The committee concluded that a lawyer whose office associates him in the public mind with presiding over a division of a court, here a probate commissioner who also sits as judge pro tem, should n…
What outside criminal and civil matters may a part-time city attorney and his partners handle in courts and agencies other than the city's municipal court?
The committee divided on defending criminal cases in other courts but unanimously approved representing clients in civil matters adverse to other governments, and in criminal or quasi-criminal matters…
If a lawyer learns mid-case that the client's personal-injury accident was faked, may the lawyer withdraw, and may the lawyer report what the client said?
The lawyer may withdraw, returning the file or moving to withdraw even without the client's agreement, and need give no specific reason unless the client insists. Whether the lawyer may disclose infor…
Can a bank require its own attorney to pass on title and make the borrower pay that attorney's fee, even if the borrower's own lawyer duplicates the work?
Yes. The committee found it not improper for a bank to require, as a condition of the loan, that its attorney examine title and that the borrower bear that fee, even though the borrower's own attorney…
Can a lawyer suspended from practice keep his name listed as an attorney in directories, and will the bar interpret the terms of his suspension?
The committee declined to interpret the terms of a Supreme Court suspension order, holding it has no jurisdiction to do so, and advised that a suspended member should not consent to his name appearing…
Can a seller's or lender's attorney close title for a development home advertised with 'No Closing Fees' without telling the buyer to get independent counsel?
No. The Committee concluded the attorney acts improperly, because a clandestine conflict exists when the seller's lawyer prepares the documents and closes title without fully advising the buyer of the…
Can a lawyer accept a referral fee or commission for placing a client's funds without telling the client?
No. The committee held that a lawyer may not take a secret commission on the placement of a client's funds, or obtain commissions from an outside source, without the client's full knowledge, approval,…
Can a Florida lawyer also run a separate business or work as an officer of a company?
Yes, with limits. The committee concluded a lawyer may engage in an independent business, and may be an officer and employee of a corporation, so long as he does not commingle the business with his la…
Can a lawyer represent a client again in a new matter after a court-appointed guardian had replaced the lawyer in an earlier case?
Yes. The committee saw no objection to a lawyer representing a client in a restoration-of-competency proceeding even though he had earlier represented her in a personal injury action from which a late…
How long must a lawyer keep client files, and what should a lawyer do with funds belonging to a client who cannot be located?
The committee advised that retention time depends on a file's importance, that the client should be asked to retrieve or authorize disposal of a file, and that funds of an unlocatable client need not …
Can a lawyer accept payment from a bank for writing title insurance and closing loans the lawyer refers to that bank?
A majority of the committee saw nothing improper in a bank charging the borrower for services and title insurance and remitting to the referring lawyer a service charge plus a fee for representing and…
Is it ethical for a lawyer to hold a client's papers under a retaining lien until the lawyer is paid?
Yes. The committee found nothing unethical in a lawyer exercising a retaining lien on papers in his hands where the client had consulted him, arranged for services, agreed on a fee, and left papers, a…
Can a lawyer leave a stack of business cards with a bank or business so its officers can hand them out to refer customers?
No. The committee concluded it is improper for a lawyer to leave a supply of professional business cards with a bank, savings and loan, or business officer so the cards can be used to refer customers,…
Can a lawyer buy a client's tax refund at a discount and split the profit with another client who fronts the money?
No. The committee held it improper for a lawyer to buy a client's income tax refund at ninety percent of face value, funded by another client who took sixty percent of the profit, finding the practice…
Can a Kentucky law firm keep a deceased partner's name in the firm name?
Yes. The committee concluded that continuing to use a deceased partner's name is not improper where local custom permits it and no deception results, here approving a name that showed the deceased par…
Can a lawyer refuse a court appointment to represent an indigent criminal defendant by saying he does not practice criminal law?
No. The committee concluded that not practicing criminal law is no excuse for refusing such an appointment, that a refusing lawyer is subject to discipline, and that a lawyer who leaves state criminal…
How these opinions are useful
- Understand the rules: Ethics opinions interpret how the rules of professional conduct apply to real fact patterns.
- Persuasive authority: Not binding like court discipline decisions, but state bar formal opinions carry substantial weight.
- Working guidance: The committee shows lawyers what the rule actually requires day to day (conflicts checks, fee letters, intake screens, withdrawal mechanics).
- Practice research: Cite ethics opinions in fee agreements, engagement letters, conflict waivers, and disqualification motions.