(Publication date Oct. 23, 2024)

Pursuant to Rule 4-403 (c) of the Rules and Regulations of the State Bar of Georgia, the Formal Advisory Opinion Board (“Board”) made a preliminary determination to issue Proposed Formal Advisory Opinion No. 23-1. Proposed Formal Advisory Opinion No. 23-1 addresses the issue presented in Formal Advisory Opinion (“FAO”) Request No. 21-R2. The proposed opinion was published on the State Bar Georgia’s website on June 23, 2023. Based on comments received in response to the proposed opinion, the Board made substantive modifications to Proposed Formal Advisory Opinion No. 23-1 and determined that the State Bar of Georgia should publish the modified version pursuant to Bar Rule 4-403 (c). State Bar members are again invited to file comments on this proposed opinion with the Board at the following address:

State Bar of Georgia
104 Marietta St. NW, Suite 100
Atlanta, GA 30303
Attention: John J. Shiptenko

To ensure that the Board considers the comments to the proposed opinion, State Bar members must file comments with the Board by Nov. 25, 2024. Any comment on the proposed opinion must refer to the proposed opinion number (Proposed Formal Advisory Opinion No. 23-1). Comments submitted to the Board pursuant to Bar Rule 4-403 (c) are for the Board’s internal use in assessing the proposed opinion and are only released to the Supreme Court of Georgia and in compliance with Bar Rule 4-403 (d). After considering all comments, the Board, in compliance with Bar Rule 4-403 (d), will make a final determination to either file the proposed opinion as drafted or modified or reconsider its decision and decline to draft and file the proposed opinion. If the Board issues an opinion, a final draft of the opinion is published, and filed with the Supreme Court of Georgia pursuant to Bar Rule 4-403 (d).