Nebraska Becomes First State to Issue Ethics Opinion on Cryptocurrency

Nebraska lawyers can now accept cryptocurrency as payment, according to an advisory opinion published by their Lawyers’ Advisory Committee – an ethics committee appointed by the state’s supreme court. Apparently, eastern Nebraska is a rapidly growing center for payment processing and financial technology.

Litigators now have an additional option to offer clients paying for their legal services. Bitcoin, a digital currency sometimes referred to as “cryptocurrency,” transfers value—or “bitcoins”—anywhere in the world. The Nebraska Ethics Advisory Board has approved the use of law firms accepting Bitcoin due to the uptick in use of digital currencies in other jurisdictions, albeit with strict requirements on when and how the currencies can be accepted. Lawyers should consider the strict requirements that come with accepting digital currencies when considering using them in their practice, caution leaders of the ABA Section of Litigation.

Read the whole post, “Cash or Bitcoin? Ethics Board Approves Technology as Fund Source” from the ABA. We’ve posted the Opinion here.