North Carolina Administrative Code › Title 27 - STATE BAR › Chapter 02 - RULES OF PROFESSIONAL CONDUCT OF THE NORTH CAROLINA STATE BAR › Section .0100 - CLIENT LAWYER RELATIONSHIP › Section 02 RULE 1.15-2 - GENERAL RULES

Current through Register Vol. 39, No. 2, July 15, 2024
(a) Entrusted
				Property. All entrusted property shall be identified, held, and maintained
				separate from the property of the lawyer, and shall be deposited, disbursed,
				and distributed only in accordance with this Rule 1.15.
(b) Deposit of Trust Funds. All trust funds
				received by or placed under the control of a lawyer shall be promptly deposited
				in either a general trust account or a dedicated trust account of the lawyer.
				Trust funds placed in a general account are those which, in the lawyer's good
				faith judgment, are nominal or short-term. General trust accounts are to be
				administered in accordance with the Rules of Professional Conduct and the
				provisions of 27 NCAC Chapter 1, Subchapter D, Sections .1300.
(c) Deposit of Fiduciary Funds. All fiduciary
				funds received by or placed under the control of a lawyer shall be promptly
				deposited in a fiduciary account or a general trust account of the
				lawyer.
(d) Safekeeping of Other
				Entrusted Property. A lawyer may also hold entrusted property other than
				fiduciary funds (such as securities) in a fiduciary account. All entrusted
				property received by a lawyer that is not deposited in a trust account or
				fiduciary account (such as a stock certificate) shall be promptly identified,
				labeled as property of the person or entity for whom it is to be held, and
				placed in a safe deposit box or other suitable place of safekeeping. The lawyer
				shall disclose the location of the property to the client or other person for
				whom it is held. Any safe deposit box or other place of safekeeping shall be
				located in this state, unless the lawyer has been otherwise authorized in
				writing by the client or other person for whom it is held.
(e) Location of Accounts. All trust accounts
				shall be maintained at a bank in North Carolina or a bank with branch offices
				in North Carolina except that, with the written consent of the client, a
				dedicated trust account may be maintained at a bank that does not have offices
				in North Carolina or at a financial institution other than a bank in or outside
				of North Carolina. A lawyer may maintain a fiduciary account at any bank or
				other financial institution in or outside of North Carolina selected by the
				lawyer in the exercise of the lawyer's fiduciary responsibility.
(f) Funds in Accounts. A trust or fiduciary
				account may only hold entrusted property. Third party funds that are not
				received by or placed under the control of the lawyer in connection with the
				performance of legal services or professional fiduciary services may not be
				deposited or maintained in a trust or fiduciary account. Additionally, no funds
				belonging to a the lawyer shall be deposited or maintained in a trust account
				or fiduciary account of the lawyer except:
(1)
				funds sufficient to open or maintain an account, pay any bank service charges,
				or pay any tax levied on the account; or
(2) funds belonging in part to a client or
				other third party and in part currently or conditionally to the
				lawyer.