MARYLAND STATE BAR ASSOCIATION, INC.
COMMITTEE ON ETHICS
ETHICS DOCKET NO. 2006-01
Re: Conflict of Interest – Elected Official Obligations
Your recent request for an opinion has been considered by the Committee on Ethics of the Maryland State Bar Association and I have been assigned to respond to you on behalf of the Committee.
In your request, you state that you are a partner in a three-person law firm which provides legal representation to a municipal corporation as general counsel pursuant to a written legal contract. The legal services provided by your firm to the municipality includes a host of legal matters including advising the elected body, drafting legislation, prosecuting municipal infractions, representing the municipality in court and otherwise advising it on various legal issues.
Your letter states that you are considering running for a seat in the Maryland House of Delegates in the upcoming 2006 elections. You note that the district in which you are considering running is comprised almost entirely of the municipality in question. As a result, you have requested that the Committee advise as to whether there would be a conflict of interest or other ethical violation if: (1) you ran for such office, and (2) if you are elected to serve in the General Assembly representing the district in question, may you and your firm continue as general counsel for the municipality.
Effective July 1, 2005, the Court of Appeals of Maryland has adopted the latest version of the Maryland Lawyers’ Rules of Professional Conduct. A review of those rules does not indicate any preclusion upon your running for an elected office as a delegate to the General Assembly of Maryland. Similarly, those rules do not contain any per se prohibition against an attorney serving as a member of the General Assembly. Indeed, to the contrary, many past and present members of the General Assembly have been or are attorneys who practice law in the State of Maryland. As a result, the Committee concludes that there is no conflict of interest or ethical violation which would preclude you from either running or serving, if elected, to the House of Delegates of the Maryland General Assembly.
In the event that you are elected, you may be presented with a number of possible ethical issues. You should be mindful of the various provisions of the rules which deal with confidentiality of information (Rule 1.6) and conflict of interest (Rules 1.7, 1.8 and 1.9). Additionally, you would need to exercise caution with respect to the disclosure of privileged information obtained by virtue of your representation of the municipality. Please also note Rule 1.10 which sets forth requirements with respect to the imputation of conflicts of interest which apply to various lawyers within a single firm. If elected, you also need to be compliant with Rule 1.11 which addresses special conflicts of interest for former and current government officers and employees.
Finally, the Committee suggests that you review and consider any public ethics statutes enacted pursuant to Section 15-803 of the State Government Article by the municipality which you and your firm represent to ensure any required compliance.
In addition to the various Rules of Professional Conduct, you would also be subject to House Rule 93 which provides a recusal procedure for House members. As you are aware, the Maryland Municipal League typically has an annual legislative agenda and, additionally, many municipalities have additional legislative items which could raise issues with respect to your voting on them.
We thank you for consulting the Committee on this matter.
REFERENCES:
Maryland Lawyers’ Rules of Professional Conduct 1.6
Maryland Lawyers’ Rules of Professional Conduct 1.7
Maryland Lawyers’ Rules of Professional Conduct 1.8
Maryland Lawyers’ Rules of Professional Conduct 1.9
Maryland Lawyers’ Rules of Professional Conduct 1.10
Maryland Lawyers’ Rules of Professional Conduct 1.11