As the year rounds to a close, it is worth our time to review some of the more significant advisory ethics opinions from the last year. Both the Philadelphia and Pennsylvania bar associations publish a number of advisory opinions each year. While not binding upon the Disciplinary Board of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, these opinions represent the thoughtful interpretation of our Rules of Professional Conduct by the attorneys who form the Pennsylvania Bar Association committee on legal ethics and professional responsibility and Philadelphia Bar Association’s professional guidance committee. The opinions of each committee are published in searchable databases on their websites. As in many years past, this year included a joint opinion between the two committees. The Pennsylvania Bar Association published an additional 14 informal opinions. The Philadelphia Bar Association published two other opinions.

Legal Services Related to Marijuana

Joint Formal Opinion 2015-100 relates to “Providing Advice to Marijuana-Related Businesses.” As the opinion notes, while many local jurisdictions throughout the United States have, to a greater or lesser degree, legalized (or decriminalized) marijuana for various purposes, it is still an illegal Schedule I drug under federal law. As of today, 23 states and the District of Columbia have legalized medical marijuana in some form or another, and four states and the District of Columbia have legalized some form of recreational use of marijuana. In Pennsylvania, efforts to legalize medical marijuana use have repeatedly stalled.

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