Opinion ID: 2275905
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 8

Heading: The basic law of conflicts of interest

Text: An attorney has a duty of loyalty to his client. A conflict of interest is any substantial risk that a lawyer's representation of a client would be materially and adversely affected because of the lawyer's countervailing interests or duties. Geoffrey C. Hazard, Jr. & W. William Hodes, The Law of Lawyering sec. 10.7 (3d ed. Supp.2004). Consequently, attorneys have a duty to avoid representation of clients when that representation may be affected due to the attorney's relationship to other parties. This is because, when a lawyer is laboring under this kind of conflict of interest, the conflict in effect forecloses alternatives that would otherwise be available to the client. Id. at sec. 11.8 (quoting Model Rules of Prof'l Conduct Rule 1.7(a)(2) cmt. 8 (2002)). In Missouri, this concept is governed by Rule 4-1.7, which states: (b) A lawyer shall not represent a client if the representation of that client may be materially limited by the lawyer's responsibilities to another client or to a third person, or by the lawyer's own interests, unless: (1) the lawyer reasonably believes the representation will not be adversely affected; and (2) each client consents after consultation. (emphasis added). When a conflict of interest arises that may materially limit the lawyer's representation of the client, the rule provides that the conflict may nonetheless be cured, in certain circumstances, by the informed consent of each client. However, when it is not reasonably likely that the lawyer will be able to provide adequate representation to one or more of the clients, the conflict can not be cured by consultation and consent. Geoffrey C. Hazard, Jr. & W. William Hodes, The Law of Lawyering sec. 10.8 (3d ed. Supp.2004) (citing Restatement of the Law of Lawyering sec. 122 (2000)). That is, [w]here ... loyal and diligent service cannot be provided to each affected client, then consent should not be sought. Id. As was stated in In re Snyder, Some conflicts of interest are considered to compromise the client's interests per se and are strictly prohibited. 35 S.W.3d 380, 383 (Mo. banc 2000). Rule 4-1.8 specifically addresses the potential conflict of interest that may arise when a third party is paying the attorney to represent the client: (f) A lawyer shall not accept compensation for representing a client from one other than the client unless: (1) the client consents after consultation; (2) there is no interference with the lawyer's independence of professional judgment or with the client-lawyer relationship; and (3) information relating to representation of a client is protected as required by Rule 1.6. As with Rule 4-1.7, this rule provides that potential conflicts of interest due to a third party funding the litigation may be cured under certain circumstances. If the lawyer's exercise of his or her independent professional judgment and the client-lawyer relationship are preserved, and the client's confidences are maintained as per Rule 1.6, then the attorney may seek the informed consent of each client to waive the conflict. However, as with Rule 4-1.7, consent should not even be sought if any of these conditions cannot be met. [6]