The New Jersey State Bar Association applauds the Supreme Court for vacating Opinion 745. Under this ruling, certified New Jersey attorneys can continue to practice in good faith when they accept referrals from their out-of-state counterparts and agree to pay a referral fee. Attorneys with preexisting referral agreements will not face a potential ethics violation or lawsuit for breaking these pacts. Most importantly, clients will not be deprived of competent counsel across state lines. The New Jersey legal community has widely understood Rule 1:39-6(d) to permit the payment of referral fees and apply to attorneys both in-state and out, as the rule makes no distinction. The plain language of the rule is clear. The NJSBA has been an active proponent for this change and is pleased the Supreme Court has returned practicing lawyers to the status quo.
Reversing Opinion 745 was a key issue for the NJSBA, as the opinion upended decades of interpretation on the rule and cast a wave of uncertainty over preexisting referral arrangements and how New Jersey attorneys should handle referrals. Following the opinion, the Association sought swift relief in the courts to protect attorneys, their clients and the greater legal practice in New Jersey. Thankfully, the Supreme Court quickly granted review and today issued a decision that is well-reasoned and fair to all parties impacted by the ACPE opinion.
The Association thanks NJSBA Treasurer Diana C. Manning for arguing this matter before the Court and NJSBA members Christina Vassillou Harvey and Kyle A. Valente, who contributed to the Association’s brief. The NJSBA also thanks the several entities that joined in challenging Opinion 745, including New Jersey Association for Justice, the Trial Attorneys of New Jersey, the American Board of Trial Advocates, Blume, Forte, Fried, Zerres & Molinari, and Bergen, Essex, Hudson and Middlesex county bar associations.