Welcome > ADMA > Your Enquiry > Client Files > Winding up (or closing) a law practice
The following are resources that may be helpful in answering your enquiry. Please familiarize yourself with them before moving on.
In brief: Closing your law practice can raise a variety of ethical duties; check out the resources below for more context.
Practice Resource - Checklist for Winding Up a Practice.
Practice Resource - For guidance on succession planning and practice coverage tools, documents and resources, visit the Succession Planning & Practice Coverage webpage.
Code - The departing lawyer’s and the law firm’s duties to notify clients and obligations with respect to transitioning files and property are discussed in: BC Code rule 3.7-1 commentaries [4] through [10].
Code - Manner of withdrawal: BC Code rule 3.7-8, 3.7-9.
Code - Limited disclosure of information to detect and resolve conflicts: BC Code Rule 3.3-7 commentaries [1] to [6]
Practice Resource - The summer 2017 Benchers’ Bulletin offers guidance on Ethical Considerations When a Lawyer Leaves a Firm.
Practice Resource - Overview of obligations and practical tips through the lens of employment law and the COVID-19 pandemic: The departing lawyer in the age of Covid-19 - Ethical, legal and practical guidance (Practice, Summer 2020 Bencher's Bulletin).
Practice Resource - Model letters for a lawyer leaving a firm: Precedent letters when lawyer leaves a firm.
Practice Resource - Asserting a file retention lien or charging order: Solicitors’ Liens and Charging Orders - Your Fees and Your Clients.
Practice Resource - Determining who owns what on a client’s file: Ownership of Documents in a Client’s File.
Practice Resource - Determining what to keep and for how long: Closed Files: Retention and Disposition, Closing a file: What documents to keep and for how long (Winter 2017 Benchers' Bulletin).
Practice Resource - Information on retired membership
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