On January 22, 2026, the Ohio Ethics Commission (OEC) issued an opinion regarding public official’s use of civil legal defense funds. The Commission found that while Ohio’s ethics laws do not prohibit a public official from soliciting contributions to the civil legal defense fund, public officials cannot solicit or accept contributions from prohibited sources, including individuals, businesses, or entities that are doing or seeking to do business with, regulated by, or interested in matters before the public agency the official serves. Additionally, a public official may use their official title in a solicitation for contributions, but they may not imply that the public agency endorses the legal defense fund. In other words, a public official can solicit contributions and use their official title, but cannot use any official public agency seals or letterhead in the solicitation.
The opinion offers several helpful hypothetical scenarios where a public official is prohibited from soliciting or accepting a contribution based on the source of the contribution. Importantly, if the public official is required to file a financial disclosure statement, then contributions to the legal defense fund must be included on the annual financial disclosure statement because contributions to a legal defense fund are considered a gift for purposes of the financial disclosure law (see Advisory Opinion No. 2006-03). Filers must disclose the source of gifts valued at $75 or more.
