On February 20, 2025, the New York State Bar Association formally issued Ethics Opinion 1279, addressing whether a lawyer could lawfully pay non‑lawyers—such as friends or family—a flat fee for completing administrative tasks like filing arbitration forms, in exchange for referring medical provider clients. See NYSBA Ethics Opinion 1279 (Fed. 20, 2025). The NYSBA concluded that even if the fee is framed as compensation for administrative work, it still constitutes a “thing of value” tied to the referral and therefore violates Rule 7.2(a) of the New York Rules of Professional Conduct.
In short, offering compensation to non‑lawyer referrers—even for seemingly legitimate services like filing forms—is off limits if it’s connected to client referrals. The NYSBA’s guidance is firm: ethics rules prohibit such arrangements.
Looking at Louisiana
The Louisiana Rules of Professional Conduct contain a parallel provision. Under Rule 7.2(c)(13), lawyers are likewise prohibited from giving “anything of value to a person for recommending the lawyer’s services,” with only narrow exceptions for paying reasonable costs for advertising or using approved referral services operated by bar associations or non‑profits. In other words, Louisiana would reach the same conclusion—the proposed flat‑fee referral scheme would be impermissible under state ethics rules.
