Opinion 1852

I have been instructed by the Rules of Professional Conduct Committee to respond to your ethics inquiry #1852 concerning a client that refuses to accept a settlement check. [The lawyer represented a client in a tort case. After a mediation in which the client signed the lawyer's accounting as modified at the client's request, the lawyer received a check from the insurance company and deposited it into his trust account. The client refused to accept the check for his share of the settlement proceeds ($98,945.47), stating that he had unspecified problems with the lawyer's accounting. The client then ceased responding to the lawyer's inquiries, and has not signed the insurance company's release.]

The committee has reviewed your inquiry and determined the following:

The $98,945.57 should be held by the law firm in an interest bearing account in accordance with RPC 1.14 until the disbursement issue is resolved. The committee does not provide legal advice. However, we call your attention to potential remedies through the court process, such as the attorney lien statute or interpleader options. The Rules of Professional Conduct do not require you to do anything further to secure your client’s signature on the release proposed by the Insurance Company.

Advisory Opinions are provided for the education of the Bar and reflect the opinion of the Committee on Professional Ethics (CPE) or its predecessors. Advisory Opinions are provided pursuant to the authorization granted by the Board of Governors, but are not individually approved by the Board and do not reflect the official position of the Bar association. Laws other than the Washington State Rules of Professional Conduct may apply to the inquiry. The Committee's answer does not include or opine about any other applicable law other than the meaning of the Rules of Professional Conduct.