Ethics Hotline & Opinions

Ethics Docket No. 1990-25

MARYLAND STATE BAR ASSOCIATION, INC.

COMMITTEE ON ETHICS

ETHICS DOCKET NO. 1990-25

Deposit of client’s funds when client cannot be located

 

Your inquiry indicates that you have received a check for $200 from the Maryland Automobile Insurance Fund made payable to your clients and you. The check was for a claim filed more than 25 years ago. You have been holding the check for more than a year. In the interim you have tried to locate the clients without success and have no idea where to locate them. You inquire as to whether you may have the check issued in your sole name, deposit the funds in your trustee account, retain one-third for your services and pay the balance to IOLTA or some appropriate agency in the Maryland State Bar Association.

The Committee recently had an occasion to address a similar question in Ethics Docket 89-26. A copy of that opinion is enclosed. The Committee believes that the advice rendered in Opinion 89-26 is applicable. It appears that you have made every effort to locate the clients, and you now must dispose of the property in accordance with the Maryland Uniform Disposition of

References: Maryland Rule of Professional Conduct 1.15

 

DISCLAIMER: Opinions of the Maryland State Bar Association (MSBA) Ethics Committee are an uncompensated service of the MSBA. This Committee’s opinions are not binding on the Maryland Court of Appeals, Maryland Attorney Grievance Commission, MSBA or this Committee. The reader is advised that subsequent judicial opinions, revisions to the rules of professional conduct, and future opinions of this Committee may render the Opinions stated herein outdated. As such, the Committee’s opinions are advisory only and neither the Committee nor the MSBA assumes any liability whatsoever with respect thereto. Accordingly, reliance upon the opinions of this Committee is solely at the risk of the user.