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Office Sharing

You'll find links to general guidelines, as well as sample agreements, ethics opinions, articles and handouts from CBA programs to the left.

From a practical standpoint, here are some quick basic ethical tips to implement re: office sharing:

  • Separate message pads for each attorney.
  • Separate in boxes for each attorney, preferably in their office.
  • Separate out boxes for each attorney, preferably in their office.
  • Separate file cabinets for each attorney, which are locked when the attorney is not in the office.
  • For attorneys who choose to use their floors as their filing cabinets, a locked office door when the attorney is not in the office.
  • No conversations regarding matters between the staff member and the attorney or anyone else in a public area, including the reception area.
  • No discussions about anything you are working on with any other attorneys or staff in the office who are not part of your firm.
  • Fax receipt directly into the attorney's e-mail box using a service like efax.  If not, only the staff member should review and separate the faxes, to ensure one attorney does not handle and accidentally review faxes of the other attorney.
  • Separate log sheets for faxes, packages, postage, copies or anything of a "soft cost" nature.
  • A "no paper" policy in the library or conference room(s).  Nothing should ever be left behind when the attorney departs from these locations.
  • Separate folder passwords for each attorney's documents on the computer, even if each attorney provides a separate computer for the staff member to use on their behalf.

If you want to share space with another lawyer, but do not want to be considered a firm for vicarious liability purposes, follow these guidelines:

  1. Use a written office-sharing agreement.
  2. Make sure your business cards, letterhead, and pleading paper are separate from your office-share mate’s. List only your name or your own firm’s name. The name of your office-share mate should not be on your business card, letterhead, or pleading paper.
  3. Make sure that all signs (such as those posted on the office door, building directory, and building exterior) present the relationship between you and the other lawyers clearly. For example, if you are a solo practitioner sharing space with a law firm, list your name separately. You can signify this separation by placing a line between the firm’s name and yours. Include the phrase “sole practitioner” after your name, if possible.
  4. Have the receptionist answer the phone in a manner that conveys separation from the other law firm. For example, answering the phone “Law Offices of John Doe” is an effective way of reminding the clients that you are separate from “Smith and Jones,” the firm with whom you share space. Using separate phone numbers makes this easy to do and is less confusing than having one phone number that is answered, “Law Offices.”
  5. If you are going to have your office-share mate help you on a case, get your client’s written consent first, just as you would if you were to associate an attorney who did not work at the end of the hallway. If you are going to split fees, follow DR 2-107.
  6. Have your own conflict-of-interest system. This preserves all of your clients’ confidences and secrets and helps establish that you are a separate entity.
  7. Review office procedures for files, mail handling, telephone messages, and faxes to make sure client confidentiality is maintained.

Sample Office Sharing Agreements

Formal Ethics Opinions

  • Ethics Opinion #88: Use and Misuse of "Confidentiality Walls," adopted May 18, 1991, amended April 18, 1992
  • Ethics Opinion #89: Office Sharing – Conflicts, Confidentiality, Letterheads and Names, adopted September 21, 1991, amended April 18, 1992

Office Leases

Donating Furniture

THE COLORADO BAR ASSOCIATION DOES NOT ACCEPT DONATIONS OF USED OFFICE FURNITURE. We do not maintain a list of individuals, companies, or organizations that are looking for free used furniture. 

We know of only one organization that accepts furniture donations, other than the charitable organization thrift stores. A link to this organization's website is found in the Additional Info box to the right. Be prepared: PRC and the charitable organization thrift stores won't accept furniture that's not in good shape. 

The CBA had good luck giving away its used office furniture through www.craigslist.com. 

If you are a member of the Colorado Bar Association, we are happy to post a message for you on our Solo Small Firm Practice listserv re: donating your furniture to a lawyer or law office. 

If you know of an organization that accepts donations of used furniture, please call Reba Nance at (303) 824-5320, or e-mail reban@cobar.org, and we will post the organization name and contact info (and website, if applicable) on our website. 

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