NV Bar Nevada Professional Responsibility 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Nevada's Rules of Professional Conduct are based primarily on which model?
- ABA Model Code of Professional Responsibility (1969)
- ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct (Correct answer)
- Restatement (Third) of the Law Governing Lawyers
- California Rules of Professional Conduct
Correct answer: ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct
Nevada's Rules of Professional Conduct are substantially based on the ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct, adapted with some Nevada-specific modifications.
Question 2: Under Nevada RPC, a lawyer's duty of confidentiality to a client begins:
- Only upon signing an engagement letter
- Only upon payment of a retainer
- When the client reasonably believes the lawyer-client relationship exists (Correct answer)
- Only after formal retention
Correct answer: When the client reasonably believes the lawyer-client relationship exists
Under Nevada RPC 1.6, confidentiality obligations arise when a prospective client reasonably believes a lawyer-client relationship has been formed, even before formal retention.
Question 3: Nevada RPC 1.7 addresses which type of conflict of interest?
- Former client conflicts
- Current client conflicts (Correct answer)
- Third-party payor conflicts
- Government attorney conflicts
Correct answer: Current client conflicts
Nevada RPC 1.7 governs current client conflicts of interest, prohibiting representation that creates a concurrent conflict unless specific conditions are met.
Question 4: Under Nevada RPC 1.5, a contingency fee agreement must be:
- Orally agreed upon and confirmed by email
- In writing, signed by the client (Correct answer)
- Approved by the Nevada State Bar
- Filed with the court
Correct answer: In writing, signed by the client
Under Nevada RPC 1.5(c), a contingency fee agreement must be in a written agreement signed by the client setting out the method by which the fee is to be determined.
Question 5: Nevada RPC 1.15 requires client funds to be held in which type of account?
- The attorney's personal account
- A trust or client funds account separate from the attorney's own funds (Correct answer)
- A joint account with the client
- An interest-bearing account in the client's name only
Correct answer: A trust or client funds account separate from the attorney's own funds
Under Nevada RPC 1.15, lawyers must deposit client funds in a separate trust (IOLTA) account and keep them separate from the lawyer's own property.
Question 6: Under Nevada RPC, which of the following communications with represented parties is prohibited?
- Communicating with an unrepresented adverse party
- Communicating with a represented party directly without consent of the party's lawyer (Correct answer)
- Communicating with a represented party's expert witness
- Sending demand letters to represented parties
Correct answer: Communicating with a represented party directly without consent of the party's lawyer
Under Nevada RPC 4.2, a lawyer may not communicate directly with a person known to be represented by counsel without that counsel's consent or legal authorization.
NV Bar Nevada Professional Responsibility 1
Nevada's Rules of Professional Conduct are based primarily on which model?