Under the ABA Model Code of Professional Responsibility, how important is the appearance of conflict of interest?
Ideally, I’m interested in Virginia, but any experience with Bar disciplinary committees would help. I should preface this that any responses do not imply an attorney-client privilege or will be construed as giving legal advice. Let us assume a hypothetical situation. An attorney has not withdrawn from representing a client. The client, in the interest of making cash flow work in a cooperative divorce settlement, issues a quitclaim to allow a refinance to go forward, and makes statements indicating that the quitclaim is intended as a hold-harmless for the specific refinance. The attorney has the next most senior lien, for fees. As I read the letter of the law, the lawyer indeed could construe the quitclaim to be abandoning any property interest, making the lawyer’s lien senior. The attorney, however, made no effort to inform the client that the attorney assumed the plaintiff had withdrawn all property interest, such that all monies from liens would then go to the lawyer directly. As I
