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Legal ethics is a cornerstone of the legal profession, guiding attorneys in their responsibilities to clients, the courts and society as a whole. In this interview, A.J. Singleton — a newly appointed member of the American Bar Association (ABA) Standing Committee on Ethics and Professional Responsibility — talks about the inner workings of the committee that shapes ethical guidance for lawyers nationwide and reflects on its importance to the legal industry.

�鶹���� Law: Congrats on your appointment to the ABA Standing Committee on Ethics and Professional Responsibility! Can you tell us a little bit more about this appointment and what you'll be doing as part of it?

A.J. Singleton (AJS): In a nutshell, we’re the “ABA Ethics Opinion folks.” The ABA Standing Committee on Ethics and Professional Responsibility is the group that drafts, debates, votes upon and issues the ABA Formal Ethics Opinions that interpret the ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct and the ABA Model Code of Judicial Conduct. There are 10 voting members of the standing committee, and we are appointed by the ABA President. My three-year term will begin this August following the conclusion of the 2025 ABA Annual Meeting.

�鶹���� Law: What motivated you to become a member?

AJS: For nearly two decades, I have focused my practice on legal ethics, risk management and professional responsibility. Since 2007, I have been, first, deputy general counsel and now, general counsel of my law firm Stoll Keenon Ogden PLLC and I have presented countless ethics CLEs over the years. In those presentations — and in my work with the Kentucky Bar Association’s Ethics Committee — I strive to promote the practical application of the Rules of Professional Conduct based on how I see legal ethics issues play out in the real world on a daily basis. I bring that same practical-application perspective to the standing committee.

�鶹���� Law: Was there any moment or event in your legal career that solidified for you the importance of ethics and professional responsibility?

AJS: I don’t know that I can pinpoint one particular moment. I think that if your practice revolves around legal ethics and professional responsibility, you probably take their importance for granted. The ethics rules and their application are so foundational to our roles as lawyers, and to our responsibilities to the profession and to society. As lawyers, we are expected to maintain the confidentiality of information relating to the representation of our clients, unless we are otherwise permitted or required to disclose as recognized by other rules or substantive law. We are to be honest and truthful with the court, such as candor towards the tribunal, by, for example, disclosing to the court controlling authority not already disclosed, even if it is contrary to our own client’s position in the matter. And we are not to engage in conduct involving dishonesty, fraud, deceit or misrepresentation — not just in the context of the practice of law but in our everyday lives. These are just some of the ethical duties we have as lawyers. In my role as a law firm general counsel, part of my responsibility is to advise my colleagues on their ethical obligations as lawyers and to help them navigate issues that may arise.

�鶹���� Law: Why would you say this committee is important to the legal profession as whole?

AJS: The Rules of Professional Conduct and their Comments are, in many respects, written generally so that lawyers can use their own professional judgment to apply them to the particular scenarios the lawyers are facing. However, sometimes the application of the rules to a particular situation can be more difficult. Through its Formal Ethics Opinions, the standing committee provides lawyers with additional guidance in the application of the rules. Many times, the Formal Ethics Opinions help to remind lawyers of their ethical obligations and to identify factors lawyers should consider to help ensure their actions — or inaction — are consistent with their ethical obligations.

�鶹���� Law: What type of impact would you want to see the committee make for you to consider its work a success?

AJS: That is actually a difficult question to answer. To me, the purpose of the standing committee is to provide guidance through the ABA Formal Ethics Opinions to attorneys who may face ethical dilemmas in their practice or who may be unclear about their ethical obligations under the Rules of Professional Conduct. If through those opinions we can help guide just one attorney facing an ethical quandary or prevent an attorney from running afoul of the rules, then we will have succeeded in our task.

�鶹���� Law: If you were to talk to incoming 1Ls on their first day of law school about ethics and professional responsibility, what are a few takeaways that you would want them to leave with?

AJS: We lawyers — and you as future lawyers — occupy a special and unique role in our society. As the Preamble of the ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct itself articulates: “A lawyer, as a member of the legal profession, is a representative of clients, an officer of the legal system and a public citizen having special responsibility for the quality of justice.”

We lawyers should strive to become trusted advisors to our clients; to maintain the rule of law, which is our charge to promote and protect; and to maintain a reputation of integrity for ourselves and for our profession. With respect to the latter, ours is largely a self-governing profession. Each lawyer holds the primary responsibility for ensuring that their own actions comply with the minimum standards of what society expects of those who hold the privilege of having a law license. The Rules of Professional Conduct and similar ethics codes have been adopted as the minimum standard of conduct by which we are judged. Some of those rules apply in the context of our representation of clients; other rules apply to our everyday life simply because we are lawyers. Some of the rules are mandatory and establish the lawyer’s duties — or, in other words, they establish requirements whereby the lawyer “shall” do something or “shall not” do something. Other rules are permissive, providing guidance on what prudent lawyers should do or should aspire to do.

But regardless, in order to comply with the Rules of Professional Conduct, you must first know the rules because, whatever the context in which you practice, the rules apply to you.

�鶹���� Law: Is there anything else that you would like to add?

AJS: I would just like to say what a humbling honor it is to have received this presidential appointment to the standing committee. Legal ethics and professional responsibility issues is not an area of practice I went to law school to pursue, and I certainly did not start my career with a legal ethics focus in mind. In a sense, that area of law found me, and I have apparently discovered my niche. It is something I am good at and something I am passionate about.

Now, this Kentucky lawyer who graduated from the University of �鶹���� of Law, is going to be one of the voting members of the ABA Standing Committee on Ethics and Professional Responsibility — the small, select group of lawyers that writes and issues the ABA Formal Ethics Opinions that help guide lawyers from coast to coast. Needless to say, I am very excited to have this opportunity and, knowing the impact I can have on issues of importance to my colleagues and to the legal profession as a whole, this appointment is certainly not something I will take lightly.