Communication with clients of another solicitor

The attention of the Litigation Committee has been drawn to a number of instances of solicitors communicating directly with clients of colleagues in contentious litigation particularly in personal injury cases. Practitioners are referred to Chapter 7 ((7) of the Guide to Professional Conduct of Solicitors in Ireland (1988) and Rule 7 of the International Bar Association International Code of Ethics (1986) both of which are published hereunder:-

7. (7) A solicitor should neither interview nor otherwise communicate with the client of another solicitor except with that solicitor's consent. In exceptional circumstances, this general rule does not apply. Where a solicitor on the other side of a transaction or a case does not reply to correspondence, a solicitor may be justified in writing directly to the client of the other solicitor. A solicitor who intends to write to a client of another solicitor should first warn that solicitor of his intention to do so.

7. It shall be considered improper for lawyers to communicate about a particular case directly with any person whom they know to be represented in that case by another lawyer without the latter's consent.