When Do Family Relationships Create Conflicts for Lawyers on Opposing Sides?
Would the lawyer be as diligent and assertive in advancing their client's interests against an opponent represented by a family member as against someone with no relationship? A good way to think about whether a relationship presents a "material limitation" is to consider whether you would file a motion for sanctions against the opposing lawyer, if otherwise appropriate and warranted.
August 28, 2024 at 02:18 PM
5 minute read
Dear Ethics Lawyer
This column, written by Mark Hinderks, of Stinson LLP, focuses on ethics questions. The discussion here is based on the ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct, but the Model Rules are often adopted in different and amended versions, and interpreted in different ways in various places. Always check the rules and authorities applicable in your relevant jurisdiction—the result may be completely different.
Question: I am a litigation attorney in a medium-sized firm in a medium-sized city. I am also part of a proud family of lawyers extending back a couple of generations. My sister and I also have daughters who have graduated from law school (what else?), and they have begun their careers at separate local litigation boutiques. Recently, a large case was filed in our city stemming from the collapse of a building under construction. It involves multiple plaintiffs and more than a dozen defendants, including one of my firm's clients. Most local litigation firms have become involved. In a quirk of coincidence arising from these circumstances, my daughter, my niece and I have each entered appearances for different defendants, each of which has cross-claimed against the others. Do our relationships as opposing counsel present conflicts? May I appear as counsel in the action in which my daughter and niece are on opposing legal teams if they are not the lead? Can any issues be resolved with client consents? Does this situation result in Rule 1.10(a) imputed disqualification of any of the firms?
A. First, congratulations on your family's focus on the practice of law. Done well, it is an honorable profession that supports a free society. That said, the tangle of circumstances you present implicates questions about personal interest conflicts under Model Rule 1.7, with clients who are adverse being represented by lawyers with family relationships. Family (and other) relationships can create a "material limitation" conflict under Rule 1.7(a)(2) if a lawyer's representation of a client would be affected or limited by the existence of the relationship. Would the lawyer be as diligent and assertive in advancing their client's interests against an opponent represented by a family member as against someone with no relationship? A good way to think about whether a relationship presents a "material limitation" is to consider whether you would file a motion for sanctions against the opposing lawyer, if otherwise appropriate and warranted.
NOT FOR REPRINT
© 2025 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
You Might Like
View AllLaw Firms Mentioned
Trending Stories
- 1Midsize Firm Bressler Amery Absorbs Austin Boutique, Gaining Four Lawyers
- 2Bill Would Allow Californians to Sue Big Oil for Climate-Linked Wildfires, Floods
- 3LinkedIn Suit Says Millions of Profiles Scraped by Singapore Firm’s Fake Accounts
- 4Supreme Court Agrees to Hear Lawsuit Over FBI Raid at Wrong House
- 5What It Takes to Connect With Millennial Jurors
Who Got The Work
J. Brugh Lower of Gibbons has entered an appearance for industrial equipment supplier Devco Corporation in a pending trademark infringement lawsuit. The suit, accusing the defendant of selling knock-off Graco products, was filed Dec. 18 in New Jersey District Court by Rivkin Radler on behalf of Graco Inc. and Graco Minnesota. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Zahid N. Quraishi, is 3:24-cv-11294, Graco Inc. et al v. Devco Corporation.
Who Got The Work
Rebecca Maller-Stein and Kent A. Yalowitz of Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer have entered their appearances for Hanaco Venture Capital and its executives, Lior Prosor and David Frankel, in a pending securities lawsuit. The action, filed on Dec. 24 in New York Southern District Court by Zell, Aron & Co. on behalf of Goldeneye Advisors, accuses the defendants of negligently and fraudulently managing the plaintiff's $1 million investment. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Vernon S. Broderick, is 1:24-cv-09918, Goldeneye Advisors, LLC v. Hanaco Venture Capital, Ltd. et al.
Who Got The Work
Attorneys from A&O Shearman has stepped in as defense counsel for Toronto-Dominion Bank and other defendants in a pending securities class action. The suit, filed Dec. 11 in New York Southern District Court by Bleichmar Fonti & Auld, accuses the defendants of concealing the bank's 'pervasive' deficiencies in regards to its compliance with the Bank Secrecy Act and the quality of its anti-money laundering controls. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Arun Subramanian, is 1:24-cv-09445, Gonzalez v. The Toronto-Dominion Bank et al.
Who Got The Work
Crown Castle International, a Pennsylvania company providing shared communications infrastructure, has turned to Luke D. Wolf of Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani to fend off a pending breach-of-contract lawsuit. The court action, filed Nov. 25 in Michigan Eastern District Court by Hooper Hathaway PC on behalf of The Town Residences LLC, accuses Crown Castle of failing to transfer approximately $30,000 in utility payments from T-Mobile in breach of a roof-top lease and assignment agreement. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Susan K. Declercq, is 2:24-cv-13131, The Town Residences LLC v. T-Mobile US, Inc. et al.
Who Got The Work
Wilfred P. Coronato and Daniel M. Schwartz of McCarter & English have stepped in as defense counsel to Electrolux Home Products Inc. in a pending product liability lawsuit. The court action, filed Nov. 26 in New York Eastern District Court by Poulos Lopiccolo PC and Nagel Rice LLP on behalf of David Stern, alleges that the defendant's refrigerators’ drawers and shelving repeatedly break and fall apart within months after purchase. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Joan M. Azrack, is 2:24-cv-08204, Stern v. Electrolux Home Products, Inc.
Featured Firms
Law Offices of Gary Martin Hays & Associates, P.C.
(470) 294-1674
Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone
(857) 444-6468
Smith & Hassler
(713) 739-1250