February 2020 Bar Bulletin
By Christopher Howard
The Rules of Professional Conduct (“RPC”) 4.2 governs when a lawyer may communicate directly with an opposing party. The concept seems simple: don’t do it, right? Well, maybe it is not quite so simple. And there are traps for the unwary.
In brief, Washington’s RPC 4.2 provides that a lawyer, when representing a client, shall not communicate with a person the lawyer knows to be represented about the subject of the representation without their lawyer’s consent or where authorized by law or court order. If you practice in more than one state this standard does vary from state to state. For example,...