Q: Conflict of interest for family business matter if uncle and father were once represented by the same lawyer.
My father, uncle and their business was once represented by the same lawyer for some sort property - partition / sale, contract, tort case defending them against the wife of their deceased elder brother. In short her share left by the deceased was bought.
Now, if my father died would there be a conflict of interest for the same lawyer to represent either party if a similar case came up with my mother as a plaintiff and my Uncle and business were the defendants?
A:
In most cases it would be a conflict of interest for an attorney to sue a party they represented.
The law offers some limited exceptions allowing representation if the attorney is not on both sides of the fence in the same case, believes it would not pose a problem and all parties consent in writing. See Maryland Rule of Professional Conduct Rule 1.7
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