13.09. Identifying the Client in the Governmental Context

The government is treated as an organization under the Rules.  What this means in practice is hard to establish.  Here is what the Comment (to Rule 1.13) says: “Defining precisely the identity of the client and prescribing the resulting obligations of such lawyers may be more difficult in the government context and is a matter beyond the scope of these Rules.”[1]  So, in essence, the Rules punt the question.

There are three possible “clients” for government lawyers: “a specific agency, it may also be a branch of the government [e.g. executive or legislative branches], or the government as a whole.”[2]  There is no easy answer to the question:  who does a lawyer working for the government represent?  In the example above, the Mississippi Attorney General represented the interest of the Attorney General’s office and the Governor was required to hire a separate lawyer to represent the Governor’s office.  There is no one-size-fits-all rule for these situations. 

There is, however, an easy answer to the question:  does the government lawyer represent members of the government (i.e.those holding office in the government)?  The answer is no.  The government lawyer represents the interests of the government.  If a government employee wants legal advice for personal issues, they must retain their own lawyer.

[1] ABA Rule 1.13, Comment [9].

[2] ABA Rule 1.13, Comment [9].