I am not sure if the conflict of interest is the same across the board.
I was told by my attny that ANY dealings my H would have had with the firm I chose (be it a consult or more) they would be unable to rep me.
I also know when I had the initial consult with my attny we were both required to sign an agreement that while the consult and any info exchanged would remain confidential (if I retained the firm or not) it would also be sufficient to serve as a conflict of interest should my H contact them for a consult regarding our divorce or ANY other matter (the firm I chose also practiced criminal and business law). So if my H needed a business attny my firm would be unable to help him as I had already consulted them.
The reason I find this very odd is attnys know under any circumstance they must first protect themselves. Even if your W approached the family attny in a casual way it seems strange he would offer her ANY advice and feel comfortable with her executing the advice on her own. If she filed papers on her own and made ANY mistake it will be very, very costly to rectify the matter. There is a reason attnys have legal assistants and paralegals to go over everything with a fine tooth comb. One misplaced decimal point can change EVERYTHING!
I could be wrong but it just strikes me as very odd. All states have a "generic" form for separation or divorce decrees that must be followed but particulars are added as per the agreement both parties reach.
As I said, maybe this is a "per state" thing but it might be something to keep in the back of your mind.
