Home » Ethics Committee: How to Obtain Answers
Ethics Committee: How to Obtain Answers
The Ethics Committee studies questions of lawyer ethics and publishes its opinions in the Bar News, on the NH Bar Website and on the NH Bar Social Media Outlets. The Committee has developed and will continually update an index of these opinions. The Ethics Committee also contributes a periodic column to Bar News entitled “Ethics Corner” containing helpful advice and practical information on common ethical dilemmas that are also published on the NH Bar Website and on the NH Bar Social Media Outlets. The Ethics Committee provides a volunteer Helpline to provide members of the Bar with guidance on the Rules of Professional Conduct. The Ethics Committee may also make recommendations to the NHBA Board of Governors regarding appropriate amendments to or clarifications of the NH Rules of Professional Conduct. The Committee meets the second Wednesday of each month.
Note: The Ethics Committee should not be confused with the N.H. Supreme Court Attorney Discipline Office (ADO) or the Professional Conduct Committee (PCC).
The Ethics Committee provides several services for members of the Bar.
- Opinions – on complex or difficult questions of general interest.
- Ethics Corner Articles – on simpler issues of general interest.
- Helpline – informal assistance by individual members of the committee.
What should I do before seeking help from the Ethics Committee?
- Review the New Hampshire Rules of Professional Conduct.
- Peruse the Bar website for relevant Ethics Opinions and articles.
What should I do if these resources do not solve my problem?
Contact the staff liaison to the Ethics Committee, 603-715-3259, or mail
NH Bar Association
2 Pillsbury Street, Suite 300
Concord, NH 03301-3502.
Is my issue appropriate for an opinion from the committee?
- The committee will accept for consideration written inquiries by members of the Bar.
- The committee will not render opinions pertaining to conduct which is an issue of pending litigation or disciplinary action.
- The committee will not render opinions involving past conduct.
- The committee may decline to render an opinion as to the proposed conduct of someone other than the inquirer.
What is the process for obtaining an opinion?
Requests for action by the full committee must be submitted in writing. A response can take two to three months, sometimes more, depending on the complexity of the issues involved. The committee member assigned to draft an opinion may contact you for more information.
The full committee will consider the draft, and any redrafts that may be necessary, at its monthly meetings. If the committee agrees on a final opinion or Article, it will be presented to the Board of Governors. After review by the Board of Governors, you will be sent a letter with a copy of the opinion responding to the inquiry. The Opinion will also be published in the Bar News, on the NH Bar website and on NH Bar Social Media Outlets.
May I request that my identity as the inquiring attorney be kept confidential?
The procedural rules of the Ethics Committee specifically prohibit the voluntary disclosure of the identity of a member of the Bar requesting an opinion on his or her own behalf to any person other than the current members of the committee and the Bar staff members assigned to the committee, unless otherwise ordered by compulsory legal process. However, the Ethics Committee is not subject to confidentiality other than its procedural rules, and disclosure of sensitive information should be carefully considered.
Is my issue appropriate for Helpline?
- It must involve proposed conduct, rather than past conduct.
- It must involve your own conduct, not the conduct of another attorney.
- It cannot involve conduct which is an issue of pending litigation or disciplinary action.
What is the process for obtaining assistance through Helpline?
Contact Robin by telephone, 603-715-3259. She will take your preliminary information and try to put you in touch with one of the members of the committee who might be able to help you.
The committee members are lawyers who are volunteering their time to help other lawyers work through their ethical issues. Accordingly, it can sometimes take a day or two for someone to contact you.
Is Helpline providing me with legal representation?
ABSOLUTELY NOT. The purpose of Helpline is to offer guidance only. The members are acting as a “sounding board” and providing “reality checks”. The members will try to be helpful in directing the further research of the inquirer. Due to the limited nature of the informal telephone conversation, the members will not give definitive answers to Helpline questions.
Even without the attorney-client relationship, however, both you and the member should be careful about conflicts. Please consider carefully the identity of the person you are assigned, as well as his or her firm and business affiliations, to avoid conflicts.
Will my conversations with the committee member be “confidential”?
Since there is no attorney-client relationship between you and the committee member, there is no confidentiality or privilege with respect to such communications in the legal sense. As with opinion inquiries, however, the committee will limit the voluntary disclosure of the identity of the inquiring attorney, and of all discussions, deliberations, files and records of the committee, to the extent that they may disclose the identity of the inquiring attorney, to members of the committee and Bar staff assigned to the committee, unless otherwise ordered by compulsory legal process or unless the inquiring attorney waives these protections in writing. If you have reason for greater restriction on disclosure, let your assigned member know, you may also want to consider obtaining counsel or legal representation where confidentiality may be preserved.
What if Helpline doesn’t help?
The member may conclude that your issue is too difficult or complex for informal assistance and may recommend that you consult with a New Hampshire attorney who handles these issues. When you are in need of counsel, you may contact the Bar Association’s Lawyer Referral Service for confidential courtesy referrals for Attorney Discipline Defense issues. Referrals may be requested anonymously if preferred.
Staff Liaison to Ethics Committee
A Note About Ethics Materials from the NH Bar Association Ethics Committee
Care should be exercised in determining which version of a given Rule applies as of a given date, and the extent to which the interpretation of a given opinion or article will apply to such version. Many interpretations of New Hampshire ethics law (including many ethics opinions, practical ethics articles, and ethics corner articles issued by the NHBA Ethics Committee) have been published under the prior version of the Rules of Professional Conduct or predecessor rules. Read more.
General Ethics Guidance
Brief Bar News articles by the Ethics Committee examine frequently asked questions on ethics. View Ethics Corner Articles.
Can’t Find an NHBA Ethics Opinion on Point?
The Ethics Committee provides several services for members of the Bar. New Hampshire lawyers may contact the Committee for confidential and informal guidance on their own prospective conduct or suggest topics for Ethics Corner.
Members are encouraged to ask the NHBA Ethics Committee questions pertaining to New Hampshire practice. Inquiries and requests for opinions should be directed to the Ethics Committee staff liaison,
603-715-3259.
NH Rules of Professional Conduct
The Rules of Professional Conduct constitute the disciplinary standard for New Hampshire lawyers. Together with law and other regulations governing lawyers, the Rules establish the boundaries of permissible and impermissible lawyer conduct. View the rules.