All opinions of the Committee on Professional Ethics are available online here. To locate a specific opinion or opinions, enter the opinion number or keyword in the appropriate search box below. Licensed attorneys may also call 877-953-5535 for access to opinions
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Canon:
Opinion #: 580
Cite: THE PROFESSIONAL ETHICS COMMITTEE FOR THE STATE BAR OF TEXAS
Date: March 2008
Is a lawyer’s refusal to comply with an arbitration decision in a fee dispute with a client a violation of the Texas Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct?
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Canon:
Opinion #: 579
Cite: THE PROFESSIONAL ETHICS COMMITTEE FOR THE STATE BAR OF TEXAS
Date: November 2007
Question 1: May a lawyer in a public defender’s office avoid a conflict of interest arising from representation of two different clients by referring one of the clients to another lawyer in the same public defender’s office?
Question 2: May a lawyer in a public defender’s office, after concluding that a conflict exists, continue to represent a client subsequent to withdrawing as counsel for another client?
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Canon:
Opinion #: 578
Cite: THE PROFESSIONAL ETHICS COMMITTEE FOR THE STATE BAR OF TEXAS
Date: July 2007
Under what circumstances is a law firm permitted to represent one municipality against another municipality that was a former client of the law firm? Would screening lawyers who had been involved in representation of the former client have an effect on the law firm’s eligibility to undertake the proposed representation against the former client?
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Canon:
Opinion #: 577
Cite: The Professional Ethics Committee For the State Bar of Texas
Date: March 2007
May a law firm hire a lawyer who is not an associate, partner, or shareholder of the law firm to provide legal services for a client of the firm and then bill the client a higher fee for the work done by that lawyer than the amount paid to the lawyer by the firm?
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Canon:
Opinion #: 576
Cite: The Professional Ethics Committee For the State Bar of Texas
Date: December 2006
May a lawyer who represents a client in a contingent fee personal injury case enter into an agreement with a lending company owned by non-lawyers under the terms of which the lending company would agree to reimburse the lawyer for litigation expenses in the case as incurred and the lawyer would agree to repay, in the event of a recovery in the lawsuit, the amounts advanced plus a funding fee equal to a fixed percentage of any amount recovered in the case but subject to an agreed maximum?
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Canon:
Opinion #: 575
Cite: The Professional Ethics Committee for the State Bar of Texas
Date: November 2006
May a lawyer electronically record a telephone conversation between the lawyer and a client or third party without first informing the other party to the call that the conversation is being recorded?
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Canon:
Opinion #: 574
Cite: The Professional Ethics Committee for the State Bar of Texas
Date: September 2006
Is it permissible under the Texas Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct for a former employee of a Texas regulatory agency to represent a client before the agency in a matter that originated during the lawyer’s employment but in which the lawyer did not participate personally and substantially?
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Canon:
Opinion #: 573
Cite: The Supreme Court of Texas Professional Ethics Committee For the State Bar of Texas
Date: July 2006
Under the Texas Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct, what requirements must be met in order for a Texas lawyer to participate in a privately sponsored internet service that obtains information over the internet from potential clients about their legal problems and forwards the information to lawyers who have paid to participate in the internet service?
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Canon:
Opinion #: 572
Cite: The Supreme Court of Texas Professional Ethics Committee
Date: June 2006
Under the Texas Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct, may a lawyer, without the express consent of a client, deliver material containing privileged information of the client to an independent contractor, such as a copy service, hired by the lawyer to perform services in connection with the lawyer's representation of the client?
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Canon:
Opinion #: 571
Cite: The Supreme Court of Texas Professional Ethics Committee
Date: May 2006
Under the Texas Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct, may a prosecutor require as part of a plea agreement that a criminal defendant waive post-conviction appeals based on prosecutorial misconduct and ineffective assistance of counsel?
Is it permissible under the Texas Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct for a criminal defendant's lawyer to advise the defendant regarding such an agreement, and if agreed to by the defendant, to sign the plea agreement along with the defendant?
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