In Re Advisory Committee on Professional Ethics

The opinion of the Court was delivered by

O’HERN, J.

The question in this case is whether an attorney may simultaneously serve as municipal attorney and as clerk-administrator for the same municipality. The Advisory Committee on Professional Ethics (Committee or ACPE) determined that an attorney may not hold both positions. The Committee concluded that such dual office-holding creates an actual conflict of interest and otherwise gives rise to an appearance of impropriety. The Committee *499reasoned that the municipal attorney might fail to bring independent judgment to evaluation of the conduct in…