PLEASE NOTE: Publication for public comment is not, and shall not be, construed as a recommendation or approval by the Board of Trustees of the materials published.
Proposed amendments to Rule 4.47 Title 4, Division 1, Chapter 4 of the Rules of the State Bar of California (Admissions Rules) regarding timing and service of an adverse moral character determination and Rule 4.49 of the Admissions Rules that would change the timing for reapplication after a final adverse moral character determination.
Rule 4.47 of Title 4, Division 1, Chapter 4 of the Rules of the State Bar of California (Admissions Rules), Appeal of adverse determination of moral character, provides as follows:
(A) An applicant notified of an adverse determination of moral character may file a request for hearing on the determination with the State Bar Court in accordance with the Rules of Procedure of the State Bar on Moral Character Proceedings. The request must be filed with the fee set forth in the Schedule of Charges and Deadlines within sixty days of receipt of the notice of adverse determination.
Rule 4.49 of the Admissions Rules, New application following adverse determination of moral character, provides as follows:
The Committee may permit an applicant who has received an adverse moral character determination to file another Application for Determination of Moral Character two years from the date of the Committee’s final determination or at some other time set by the Committee, for good cause shown, at the time of its adverse determination.
An applicant can seek review of the Committee’s denial of his or her Application for Determination of Moral Character by requesting a hearing in the State Bar Court Hearing Department, subsequent review by the State Bar Court Review Department and ultimately the California Supreme Court. The findings of each of these courts is a decision on the merits of the person’s Application for Determination of Moral Character.
Admissions Rule 4.47 currently states that an applicant has 60 days from his or her receipt of the notice of an adverse moral character determination to request a hearing with the State Bar Court. This is in conflict with the State Bar Rules of Procedure, which require 60 days from service of the notice.
Pursuant to Admissions Rule 4.49, when the Committee denies a moral character application, the time a person must wait before submitting a new application is calculated from the date of the Committee’s adverse decision. An applicant may arguably seek to file a new Application for Determination of Moral Character while his or her prior application is being considered in the State Bar Court or the California Supreme Court, or immediately after such proceedings have concluded. The Committee believes that applicants receiving adverse moral character decisions should not be permitted to submit new applications from the date of a decision from the State Bar Court or the California Supreme Court is final. This would give applicants adequate time to demonstrate rehabilitation following a denial by the Committee or the courts, and it would also improve efficiency since applications would not be double tracked.
The following proposed amendments were approved by the Committee in principle, subject to a public comment period, final review and adoption by the Committee and approval of the State Bar’s Board of Trustees:
Rule 4.47 Appeal of adverse determination of moral character (A) An applicant notified of an adverse determination of moral character may file a request for hearing on the determination with the State Bar Court in accordance with the Rules of Procedure of the State Bar on Moral Character Proceedings. The request must be filed with the fee set forth in the Schedule of Charges and Deadlines within sixty days of the date of service receipt of the notice of adverse determination. Rule 4.49 New application following adverse determination of moral character The Committee may permit an applicant who has received an adverse moral character determination to file another Application for Determination of Moral Character two years from the date of the Committee’s final determination or at some other time set by the Committee, for good cause shown, at the time of its adverse determination.
Rule 4.47 Appeal of adverse determination of moral character
(A) An applicant notified of an adverse determination of moral character may file a request for hearing on the determination with the State Bar Court in accordance with the Rules of Procedure of the State Bar on Moral Character Proceedings. The request must be filed with the fee set forth in the Schedule of Charges and Deadlines within sixty days of the date of service receipt of the notice of adverse determination.
Rule 4.49 New application following adverse determination of moral character
None.
Committee of Bar Examiners
May 29, 2015