Rule 1.1 Competence. (a) A lawyer shall not intentionally, recklessly, with gross negligence, or repeatedly fail to perform legal services with competence.Formal Agreement: Often, the relationship officially begins when you sign a retainer agreement with the attorney. Generally it is unethical for an attorney to date a client. Certainly, depending on the facts and the type of representation, it's borderline unethical. No course of action is being proposed and no attorneyclient relationship or privilege has been formed as a result of this conversation. Lawyers who want to date former clients should thus wait until the entire action is over before starting the relationship. An attorneyclient relationship generally doesn't form until the lawyer and client agree to it. The media (telephone, face-to-face, internet, etc.) does not matter. Generally, most attorneys will confirm representation.