New ABA Ethics Opinion: Lawyers Must Ensure Employees Don’t Solicit Clients - Articles

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Posted by: Stacey Shrader Joslin on Apr 15, 2022

The American Bar Association Standing Committee on Ethics and Professional Responsibility released a formal opinion this week to clarify the Model Rules of Professional Conduct as they relate to lawyer solicitation for new clients and “live person-to-person contact.” Based on Formal Opinion 501, attorneys not only must refrain from engaging in improper direct solicitation of potential clients, but also have an ethical responsibility to ensure that employees or others hired by the lawyers do not engage in such misconduct. The rule does permit solicitation if the contacted person is a lawyer, a family member or a close friend, or a person who routinely uses the types of services offered by the lawyer, and referrals from a third party who is not an employee also may be permissible. Read more from the ABA and the ABA Journal.