1.8:210 SEXUAL RELATIONS WITH CLIENTS

• Jurisdiction: Arizona

1.8:210 Sexual Relations with Clients

ER 1.8(j), added by the 2003 amendments, contains a flat prohibition on a lawyer having "sexual relations with a client unless a consensual sexual relationship existed between them when the lawyer-client relationship commenced." Where the client is an organization, ER 1.8 "prohibits a lawyer for the organization from having a sexual relationship with a constituent of the organization who supervises, directs or regularly consults with that lawyer concerning the organization's legal matters." ER 1.8 cmt. [19]. This "conflict" is personal to the lawyer and is not imputed to others in the affected lawyer's firm. ER 1.8(k). The rationale for the Rule is explained in the Comments:

[17] The relationship between lawyer and client is a fiduciary one in which the lawyer occupies the highest position of trust and confidence. The relationship is almost always unequal; thus, a sexual relationship between lawyer and...