Opinion 1701

Filing formal allegations of malpractice on a client's behalf against the client's former attorney would not violate RPC 1.8(j). However, without further detail and/or information, the Committee cannot offer any insight into whether any other ethical rules would be violated. The Committee refers you to RPC 8.3 in assessing your duty to report attorney misconduct . You should also refer to RPC 1.3 regarding meritorious claims.

Your decision regarding whether to report misconduct must be based on (1) consultation with your client and the requirements of RPC 1.6, and [2] the requirements of RPC 1.7(b). Under RPC 1.7(b) you must evaluate whether your relationship with other lawyers would influence your independent professional judgment in making this decision.

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.