Sign In
  • November 11, 2008

    Inside the Bar December 2008: Wisconsin Supreme Court adopts BBE petitions relating to suspension, noncompliance, reinstatement, and more

    On Nov. 10, the Wisconsin Supreme Court unanimously adopted three Board of Bar Examiners petitions relating to suspension for noncompliance with continuing legal education requirements and reinstatement, the manner of filing documents relating to CLE requirements, and the filing of applications for admission and the late fee for application under diploma privilege.

    Inside the   BarInside the Bar
    December 2008

    Wisconsin Supreme Court adopts BBE petitions relating to noncompliance, suspension, reinstatement, and more

    On Nov. 10, the Wisconsin Supreme Court unanimously adopted three Board of Bar Examiners (BBE) petitions, with amendments, relating to suspension for noncompliance with continuing legal education (CLE) requirements and reinstatement, the manner of filing documents relating to CLE requirements, and filing applications for admission and late fees under the diploma privilege. Justice Patience Roggensack was not present for the administrative hearing and did not vote.

    Notification of suspension and reinstatement – Petition 08-05. Under the new rule, notice of automatic suspension and reinstatement relating to noncompliance with CLE will be expanded to include:

    • Clerk of circuit courts,
    • Registers of probate,
    • State public defender,
    • State Bar of Wisconsin,
    • Court commissioners appointed under SCR 75.02(1),
    • Clerks of federal district courts, and
    • Tribal and juvenile courts.

    Under the present SCR 31.10 and 31.11, the BBE notifies lawyers who are not in compliance with CLE requirements that they will be suspended from the practice of law. After 60 days, the board transmits a list of the lawyers who are not in compliance to the clerk of the supreme court and each judge of a court of record. Upon reinstatement, only the clerk of the supreme court receives notification.

    Timely filing – Petition 08-06. A CLE report or other CLE-related document will be considered timely filed when it bears a mark –affixed within the time specified for filing – of the U.S. Postal Service, a commercial postage meter, or other third-party commercial carrier.

    Under the present SCR 31.13, a CLE report or other CLE-related document is not deemed timely unless it arrives at the BBE offices during regular business hours on or before the deadline day.

    This change expands the current rule to be more friendly to lawyers. Persons who rely on first class mail cannot be sure their timely mailed documents will arrive in time. If they want to be sure, they must incur the greater cost of hand delivery or a courier service.

    The rule is patterned on the rule for filing briefs in the U.S. Supreme Court.

    Diploma privilege fees and applications – Petition 08-14. The same rule adopted in petition 08-06 relating to timely filing will apply to filing of applications under the diploma privilege. The fee for late application for a character and fitness investigation under the diploma privilege increases to $200.

    The second change affects only the small number of persons each year who do not make a timely application, but who otherwise satisfy all requirements for admission under the diploma privilege, SCR 40.03. In recent years, the BBE board has often certified these applicants for admission if their applications were no more than a few days or weeks late, subject to the $100 late fee set by SCR 40.14(3)(h). The board deems relegating these applicants to the bar examination process a penalty that is disproportionate to their tardiness.

    The petition sought to increase the late fee to $500. The court supported a $200 late fee, which is comparable to the Bar examination fee.


Join the conversation! Log in to comment.
System.NullReferenceException: Object reference not set to an instance of an object. at News.NewsTOCNavigation.NewsTOCNavigationUserControl.Page_Load(Object sender, EventArgs e)

News & Pubs Search

-
Format: MM/DD/YYYY