When it comes to an attorney's obligation to maintain a client's confidential information, the relevant California statute does not mince words. Business and Professions Code §6068(e)(1) provides that it is the duty of an attorney “[t]o maintain inviolate the confidence, and at every peril to himself or herself to preserve the secrets, of his or her client.”

Rule 1.6 of the California Rules of Professional Conduct further specifies that disclosure of such information is permitted only where the client provides informed consent or in other very limited circumstances. Nonetheless, despite the strict language, some attorneys play fast and loose when it comes to disclosing confidential information on social media. Now, in the (relatively) new world of social media, there is increasing awareness among firms and the bar as a whole that the same confidentiality rules apply to social media and blogging.

In 2018 the ABA's Standing Committee on Ethics and Professional Responsibility issued an opinion that attempted to provide clarity regarding the scope of an attorney's obligation to maintain client confidences when it comes to postings on blogs or other social media. In Formal Opinion 480, the ABA advised that “[l]awyers who blog or engage in other public commentary may not reveal information relating to a representation, including information contained in a public record, unless authorized by a provision of the Model Rules.”