Keep a conflicted lawyer out of a matter
An ethical wall that keeps one person out of a matter or a whole client group, whatever their teams or direct access say, with the reason on record.
Screenshots are taken from the app on every release. Updated 15 October 2026.
The conflict check comes back with a name: an associate acted for the other side at her previous firm, or a partner has a personal connection to the client. The firm takes the matter on, but that lawyer must not see it, even though her team works on the client and her practice group sees every matter. An ethical wall keeps one person out of one matter or one whole group, and it holds whatever access they would otherwise have.
Two questions decide the wall. Is the conflict about one matter, or about the client as a whole? And what should the record say about why?
| The conflict | Wall the person off |
|---|---|
| They acted for the other side in this dispute or deal | The matter |
| A personal or financial connection to the client | The client's group, which covers every matter in it |
| They are a witness, or may be one | The matter |
Put up the wall
Open the Admin panel, choose Users under Access & Security, find the person and click the shield on their row (Teams and access).
The panel shows the person's teams and how many matters they reach directly and through teams. Under Ethical walls, click Wall off from….
Under Search for a matter or group, type part of its name and pick it. Write the Reason (optional), read the warning and click Wall off.
The person loses access at once, however they had it: added by name, through a team, or through a team's access to every matter in the group. A wall on a group covers the group, every matter in it and the board permission sets on its boards.
The wall is listed in the panel with the reason, who added it and when.
What the wall changes
Nobody can let the person back in by accident. In the matter's Manage access, the person shows greyed out with a lock, and the list says they are behind an ethical wall and cannot be given access. Adding one of their teams to the matter does not reach them either.
The matter's people can see why. Manage access on the walled matter lists the wall under Ethical walls, with the reason and who set it, and says that admins manage walls in the admin panel.
The firm sees how many are in place. The Teams page shows the number of walls, with a link to Users.
It is on the record. The Audit log records Ethical wall added and Ethical wall lifted; see check the firm's audit trail.
Lift the wall
When the conflict has gone, open the same panel and click Lift next to the wall.
Click Lift wall. The person gets back the access they had been given directly before the wall went up, and access through their teams applies again.
Tips from practice
- Wall before you staff. Put the wall up when the conflict is cleared on terms, before the team is added to the matter, so the person never has the file open.
- Write the reason for the conflicts file. The people on the matter can read it in Manage access, so say what the wall is for in the words the conflicts record uses, and leave out what they should not learn from it.
- A wall does not take anyone off their team. The person keeps everything else their teams give them. Only the walled matter or group is closed to them.
- Review walls when a matter closes. A wall stays until it is lifted. When the reason has passed, lift it, so the list on the Teams page means something.
Before this: give a practice team access in one go. See also: check the firm's audit trail.