Proposed Amendments to the California Rules of Court and Title 2 of the State Bar Rules Regarding the Rights and Responsibilities of Licensees
The State Bar is seeking comment on amendments to the rules requiring licensees to comply with rules prior to returning to active status, requiring licensees to provide information to the State Bar, making changes to the Client Trust Account Protection Program (CTAPP), making fee waivers more accessible, clarifying the distinction between the New Attorney Training (NAT) and Minimum Continuing Legal Education (MCLE), and eliminating exemptions from the NAT.
Deadline: July 26, 2023, 11:59 p.m.
Direct comments to
Comments should be submitted using the online Public Comment Form. The online form allows you to input your comments directly and can also be used to upload your comment letter and/or other attachments.
Background
The State Bar has proposed several rule changes to resolve different issues, including reducing the administrative effort required to ensure licensees returning from inactive status comply with various rules of the State Bar, cleanup of rule 2.2 pertaining to the licensee record, amending the Rules of Court to permit the State Bar to enforce rule 2.2, amendments to CTAPP, amendments to the licensee fee scaling and fee waiver rules, amendments to the NAT program, and other minor amendments to Title 2 of the Rules of the State Bar.
Discussion/proposal
Several proposed rule changes are designed to require inactive and not eligible licensees to comply with the rules prior to returning to active status. Unlike inactive attorneys, when a licensee’s period of suspension is over, they are returned to active status by operation of law (i.e., by termination of the order of suspension). As a result, the State Bar moves them to active status and expends significant administrative resources to follow up with the licensee to get them to comply with any outstanding reporting requirements and, if they fail to comply, to enroll the licensee as inactive for failure to comply. Requiring inactive and not eligible licensees to comply prior to returning to active status would assist the State Bar in ensuring compliance.
Proposed changes to rule 2.2 of the Rules of the State Bar would update licensee reporting requirements, make explicit in the rule that some information reported by a licensee is not public information and therefore not subject to disclosure, and impose a penalty for noncompliance with rule 2.2.
Proposed changes to rule 2.5 of the Rules of the State Bar would clarify the definition of a licensee responsible for client funds, the types of trust accounts reported under CTAPP, the reporting period for various licensees, the reporting deadline for new licensees, and would require licensees exempt from reporting under rule 2.5(k)(2) to comply with CTAPP reporting requirements prior to returning to active status.
Proposed amendments to rule 2.15 and 2.16 of the Rules of the State Bar make specified penalties eligible for waiver or scaling, require that requests for fee scaling and fee waivers be submitted in the calendar year for which the relief is requested, and expands the availability of fee waivers.
Other proposed amendments remove the NAT from Division 4 of Title 2 and creates a new Division 6 of Title 2, and clarify that NAT is not MCLE and the MCLE exemptions do not apply to NAT.
Other minor changes to Title 2 of the Rules of the State Bar.
Any fiscal/personnel impact
Proposed changes to rule 2.2 of the Rules of the State Bar, in conjunction with proposed changes to Rule 9.9 of the Rules of Court, may result in additional noncompliance penalties. The amount of these penalties is undetermined. All related revenue would accrue to the General Fund.
Proposed changes to rule 2.16 of the Rules of the State Bar will make licensee fee waivers more accessible. Licensees who make $50,000 or less will be entitled to a 50 percent waiver of licensing fees. Licensees who make $30,000 or less will be entitled to a 100 percent waiver of licensing fees.
Background material
From the Board of Trustees meeting May 18—19, 2023: Agenda Item 60-2 Proposed Amendments to California Rules of Court (Rules 9.8.5, 9.9, 9.32, 9.49 and New Rule of Court 9.8.1) and Rules of the State Bar (Rules 2.2, 2.5, 2.15, 2.16, 2.30, 2.51, 2.53, 2.71, 2.111 and New State Bar Rules 2.140–2.153) Relating to Regulatory Function of the State Bar: Request to Circulate for Public Comment
Source
Board of Trustees sitting as the Regulation and Discipline Committee
Deadline
July 26, 2023, 11:59 p.m.
Direct comments to
Comments should be submitted using the online Public Comment Form. The online form allows you to input your comments directly and can also be used to upload your comment letter and/or other attachments.
