Information for Legal Professionals

An IOLTA account at LFW is for client funds that are nominal in amount or are expected to be held for a short period of time, and as such would not be expected to earn interest or pay dividends for such clients in excess of the reasonably estimated cost of establishing, maintaining, and accounting for trust accounts for clients’ benefit.

Pursuant to Rule 1.15 of the Washington Rules of Professional Conduct, all legal professionals — lawyers, limited practice officers (LPOs), and limited license legal technicians (LLLTs) — must maintain their LFW IOLTA accounts at authorized financial institutions.

Legal professionals are not required to make independent determinations as to whether their financial institution satisfies the requirements, as only those approved institutions are listed by LFW. Legal professionals need only check the list to ensure their accounts are maintained at an eligible depository.

Click here for a list of LFW’s authorized financial institutions.

Click here for information from the Washington State Bar Association on managing client trust accounts. (.pdf)

To establish an IOLTA account with LFW, please fill out one of the following forms:

For Lawyers (.pdf)

For LPOs (.pdf)

For LLLTs (.pdf)