Informal Opinion Number: 960145

QUESTION: Attorney will be leaving the firm in a couple of months. Attorney will be taking a plaintiff´s case. Before Attorney leaves the firm, an attorney who is representing the defendant in that case is scheduled to join the firm. Does Attorney need to change the departure date to avoid a conflict? ANSWER: Under Rules 4-1.7(a) and 1.10, Attorney and the other attorney may not continue on opposite sides of the same case while they are in the same firm. The only way that Attorney can avoid this problem is by Attorney´s departure from the firm before the other attorney joins the firm.

Informal Opinions are ethics advisory opinions issued by the Office of Legal Ethics Counsel to members of the Bar about Rule 4 (Rules of Professional Conduct), Rule 5 (Complaints and Proceedings Thereon), and Rule 6 (Fees to Practice Law) pursuant to Missouri Supreme Court Rule 5.30(c). Written summaries of select Informal Opinions are published for informational purposes as determined by the Advisory Committee of the Supreme Court of Missouri pursuant to Rule 5.30(c). Informal opinion summaries are advisory in nature and are not binding. These opinions are published as an educational service and do not constitute legal advice.

To request an Informal Opinion, please visit: http://mo-legal-ethics.org/for lawyers/requesting-an-informal-advisory-opinion/.

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