Opinion 1271 (08/20/2024) Topic: Sharing of Legal Fees with Non-Lawyer; Impermissible Referral Fees; Non- Refundable Retainer Digest: A lawyer violates Rule 5.4(a), which prohibits a lawyer from sharing legal fees with a non-lawyer, if she pays a percentage of a legal fee to an online service owned by non-lawyers, on which attorneys can bid … Continued
Topic: Engagement letters; Recording attorney-client communications; Withdrawing from employment; Advance consent to withdrawal. Digest: A lawyer’s engagement letter or retainer agreement may prohibit the client from making audio or video recordings of communications between the lawyer and client provided the engagement letter or retainer agreement: (a) does not mislead the client regarding circumstances under … Continued
Topic: Part-Time Judge; Part-Time Public Defender; Conflict of Interest Digest: A part-time assistant public defender whose law partner is both his cousin and a part-time town court judge may not represent clients of the public defender’s office in the town court where his cousin/law partner and his cousin’s co-judge serve because that representation would violate … Continued
Topic: Confidential information; publication of article about issues arising in a case handled by the lawyer Digest: After the termination of the representation, a lawyer may publish an article that discusses legal issues in the representation, as long as the article does not reveal confidential information without the consent of the client. Confidential information does … Continued
TOPIC: Paying for a recommendation or referral. DIGEST: A website that promises to connect potential clients with attorneys whom the website claims have excellent qualifications and are carefully vetted, constitutes an “advertisement” on behalf of the lawyers available through the website (see Rule 1.0(a) and Rule 7.1), and the lawyers’ payment to the business providing … Continued
TOPIC: Disclosing confidential information to government agency that is funding a client’s representation. DIGEST: An attorney may not report a client’s confidential information to a government agency that funds the representation of the client without the client’s informed consent. RULES: 1.0(j), 1.4, 1.6(a)-(b), 1.8(f), 1.9(c), 1.18(b) FACTS: The inquirer receives funding from a government agency … Continued
TOPIC: Conflicts of interest, former clients DIGEST: A lawyer formerly employed by a Legal Aid Society office would not have a conflict in representing a client in a matter adverse to a party who had been represented by other lawyers in that office at that time unless the lawyer, while at Legal Aid, acquired confidential … Continued
Withdraws N.Y. State 1258 Topic: Credit card fees as an “expense” Digest: A lawyer may pass on a merchant processing fee to clients who pay for legal services by credit card provided that both the amount of the legal fee and the amount of the processing fee are reasonable, and provided that the lawyer has … Continued
TOPIC: Listing of Degrees by Attorney Working in Nonlegal Capacity DIGEST: An attorney who has earned a juris doctor degree may use a “J.D.” designation on letterhead and business cards while working in a nonlegal capacity as long as the lawyer takes care to ensure that any relevant audience is not misled to believe that … Continued
TOPIC: Part-time town attorney’s representation of criminal defendants in centralized arraignment part. DIGEST: A part-time town attorney who has no prosecutorial responsibilities may, in his role as a part-time county public defender, represent criminal defendants at arraignments before a justice of the same town’s court even if that justice sometimes sits on rotation in a … Continued