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The American Bar Association Standing Committee on Ethics and Professional Responsibility has released an ethics opinion providing guidance on how a lawyer might use a legal assistant to perform client intake tasks under ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct.
Formal Opinion 506 primarily looks at Model Rule 5.3, which addresses managing and supervising nonlawyer assistants, as well as other model rules on client communications.
“Trained intake personnel may check for conflicts of interest, collect basic information from prospective plaintiffs or class members for lawyers to ascertain their eligibility to make a claim, and explain how fees and costs are charged in such cases,” the opinion, released June 7, says. Additionally, it notes that if the prospective client meets the eligibility criteria and specifics set forth by the lawyers, “then the intake personnel send the prospective clients the standard fee agreement for consideration.”
The opinion adds that while there are benefits to using nonlawyer assistants, “without proper policies, training and supervision in place, this delegation could lead to ethical violations and unfortunate consequences for clients and lawyers. The practice must be carefully and astutely managed.”
Looking at Model Rule 5.5 on the unauthorized practice of law, the opinion notes that whether a nonlawyer may answer a prospective client’s questions depends on the question presented and what would be considered “the practice of law” in the jurisdiction in which the lawyer practices.
The guidance of the opinion is that while a lawyer can have an assistant perform an array of tasks at client intake, the lawyer should ensure that the prospective client is always offered an opportunity to discuss the fee agreement and scope of representation with the lawyer.
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