Attorneys are increasingly joining their fellow professionals in the shared office space realm. Often referred to as a co-working space, this relatively recent phenomenon allows multiple individuals with their own practices to pool their resources to rent out a single space. Often times the office-mates will share other administrative costs, such as supplies or staff Some attorneys will even share their space with other non-attorney professionals.

There are indeed many benefits in a shared office space; but they are not without risk. Although shared office spaces are almost universally recognized as not per se unethical, they pose a number of unique challenges for attorneys in complying with the Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct. Moreover, shared spaces can pose civil liability risk to attorneys as well.