I am a practicing lawyer and getting up in years. I wish to sell a portion of my law practice which involves civil and criminal litigation to a new partnership. But, I wish to continue to practice law and handle the wills and estates that I have been involved with over the time of my legal career. Can I do that?   

The answer is that a lawyer can do that, but it’s been only recently that a divided sale of a practice has been allowed. The appropriate rule is Rule of Professional Conduct 1.17. Some history is necessary. Until 2001, a lawyer was forbidden to sell their law practice or their clients. The reason was that law was viewed as a profession and it would be unseemly to allow a lawyer to sell their clients as if they were tangible goods.