LEO #1601 CONFIDENCES AND SECRETS; ATTORNEY-CLIENT RELATIONSHIP;
          REQUEST BY ATTORNEY'S PROSPECTIVE NON-LAWYER EMPLOYER
          TO REVEAL CONFIDENCES AND SECRETS

You have presented a hypothetical situation in which Professor X
is a licensed attorney at a state institution of higher learning. 
You indicate that she has been asked, as a condition of
employment, (1) to disclose to the administration confidences or
secrets of academic colleagues or students who have requested her
legal advice; and (2) to assure the administration that she will
not accept or treat as a confidence or secret any information
disclosed to her by an academic colleague or student. 

You have asked the committee to opine whether, under the facts of
the inquiry, the professor/lawyer would be in violation of the
Disciplinary Rules by (1) disclosing such information or (2)
giving such assurance.

The appropriate and controlling Disciplinary Rule related to your
inquiry is DR 4-101, which provides that a lawyer should preserve
client confidences and secrets.

The committee has previously opined that even though an attorney-
client relationship may not have arisen in other respects, a
person's meeting or interview with an attorney may create an
expectation of confidentiality which must be protected by that
attorney.  See LEOs #1453, #1457.  The committee believes,
therefore, that, in a situation where such an expectation arose,
Professor X would be in violation of DR 4-101 if she were to
disclose to the administration confidences or secrets of academic
colleagues or students.  However, the committee is of the opinion
that, although the institution of higher education cannot require
the attorney/professor to divulge confidences and secrets, a
regulation restricting receipt by the employee of confidences and
secrets in the context you described would not be improper under
the Rules.  In such case, the attorney/professor should issue a
disclaimer to colleagues or students indicating that no
attorney/client relationship will be formed and any information
received will not be treated as secret or confidential. 

[DRs 4-101; LEOs #1453, 1457]

Committee Opinion
July 18, 1994