Opinion 1607

The Committee reviewed your inquiry regarding an attorney's compliance with RPC 1.6 when using a facsimile machine to transmit to the client documents, confidences or secrets. To comply with RPC 1.6, the Committee decided that communicating by facsimile machine is more similar to communicating by mail than by cordless telephone. The use of cordless telephones presents more problems in protecting client confidences because users have no protectable expectation of privacy, while attorneys using facsimile machines can take protective measures to maintain client confidences and secrets. As with any client communication, the attorney is responsible for protecting privileged information.

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.