NEW YORK, Oct 20 (Reuters) - An ethics opinion issued by the New York County Lawyers Association on Thursday could be good news for any white-shoe attorney hankering to join Occupy Wall Street protesters in Zuccotti Park.

The opinion interprets changes made last year to a provision of the New York Rules of Professional Conduct, Rule 6.4, that deals with attorneys' rights to participate in "law reform" activities.

The change removed the provision requiring attorneys to notify clients if they participated in any such activities that could harm their clients' interests.

Law reform activities include government protests, as well as opposition to zoning regulations, calls for increased funding, and efforts to preserve historic landmarks.

Thursday's opinion by NYCLA, the first organization to interpret the change, stated that lawyers could speak or participate in law reform activities without a client's consent, and even in the face of a client's affirmative objection, as long as no confidential client information is disclosed during that participation.

The opinion added that attorneys may engage in such activities as long as the lawyers' participation did not violate other conflict-of-interest rules governing attorney conduct.

"This is not a green light to push your client under the bus," said Barry Temkin, chair of NYCLA's professional ethics committee. "But a lawyer must have the freedom to speak."

Temkin added that Occupy Wall Street was not the kind of reform movement contemplated by the rule, because the protests have not proposed any specific legal reforms. He said the rule could apply if the protesters' reform efforts become more focused.

The NYCLA opinion also said that if a client would benefit from a lawyer taking a certain position for law reform, the lawyer has a responsibility to disclose that to the organization seeking reform.

(Reporting by Leigh Jones)

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