Inside 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.
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