In two useful recent ethics opinions, the ABA Standing Committee on Ethics and Professional Responsibility has addressed topics relevant to many lawyers. Formal Opinion 506 (“Opinion 506”) examines lawyers’ ethical obligations when delegating specific prospective client-intake tasks to nonlawyers. Formal Opinion 507 (“Opinion 507”) addresses the duties that exist when lawyers in different firms share office space and support arrangements.

Opinion 506

Formal Opinion 506 concludes that a “lawyer must provide nonlawyers who are performing client-intake tasks with policies, training, and supervision regarding which questions the nonlawyer may answer, how to respond to those questions, and which questions should be presented to the lawyer.”