Washington, D.C. (August 10, 2021): Dennis Quinn, Legal Ethics Committee Chair is quoted in Virginia Lawyers Weekly Article, “Rule on lawyer and client sex rejected.” The Supreme Court of Virginia has rejected changes proposed by the Virginia State Bar to the Rules of Professional Conduct prohibiting a lawyer from having sexual relations with a current client.
The denial marks the end of a review process that the VSB Standing Committee on Legal Ethics began in 2019. The VSB sought to implement changes that would have brought the commonwealth’s rules on the issue in line with the American Bar Association Model Rules and the rules of at least 43 other jurisdictions.