A lawyer may share office space with a non-lawyer as long as there is no joint ownership of a practice.

• A. True
• B. False; non-lawyer ownership or control that impairs independence is generally prohibited
• C. True, as long as there is a non-lawyer manager
• D. False; sharing is always prohibited

Answer: (B)

Independence of professional judgment is the central issue. A lawyer may share office space with a non-lawyer, but not if that arrangement gives the non-lawyer ownership or control that could impair the lawyer’s independent professional judgment. The rule focuses on whether any non-lawyer involvement could influence legal advice, decisions, or billing. So even without joint ownership, a non-lawyer who has ownership or control that could affect the practice is prohibited. That’s why the statement is not correct in its narrow form—the concern isn’t merely ownership of the practice, but any non-lawyer influence that could impair independence.