Vol. 78, No. 7, July
2005
Tax delinquent attorneys could face sanctions if new State Budget
Bill passes
Wisconsin attorneys who owe delinquent state taxes may face license
sanctions under provisions in the 2005-07 State Budget Bill.
State Bar's position on proposed tax
delinquency provisions
In March 2005, the Board of Governors adopted a policy position
opposing provisions in the governor's budget bill that formalize a
process to deny or revoke the law license of lawyers who are delinquent
in taxes owed to the state. The board stated that the Bar believes
attorneys are unique because their licensure is regulated by the supreme
court and that being tax delinquent does not per se render an individual
unfit to practice law. Furthermore, the bill's terminology describing
license sanctions was not consistent with the court's terminology. The
board directed that if the Bar's government relations staff is
"unsuccessful in getting the language removed, the Bar would recommend
changing the language from revocation to suspension, which is consistent
with the statutory language that permits the court to suspend a lawyer's
license for being delinquent in making court-ordered child support
payments."
Because the proposal is expected to generate up to $700,000 in state
tax revenue over the biennium, law-makers were reluctant to delete the
plan in light of the state's budget shortfall. State Bar lobbying staff
secured a modification in the proposal to clarify that all of the new
provisions would apply to license suspensions, as well as to denials or
revocations.
The budget version approved by the Joint Committee on Finance and
passed by the State Assembly and Senate incorporates the governor's
recommendations regarding the denial, suspension, or revocation of law
licenses for individuals who are delinquent in the payment of state
taxes under chapters 71, 72, 76, 77, 78, 125, or 139 of the Wisconsin
Statutes. The budget bill now goes to the governor.
Although existing state statutes have (for several years) included
language regarding denial or revocation of law licenses, the provisions
are not self-executing. They call for the supreme court, as the
licensing authority, to enter into a memorandum of understanding (MOU)
with the Department of Revenue (DOR) and to promulgate rules governing
the process. To date, the supreme court has neither entered into an MOU
nor promulgated rules, expressing a preference that all administrative
remedies be exhausted with the DOR before the Office of Lawyer
Regulation (OLR) becomes involved with any license actions based on tax
delinquency.
The provisions in the bill address this concern by creating a unique
procedure for attorneys. Wis. Stat. Section 73.0301 is amended to
require that the hearing process for a law license applicant or attorney
owing delinquent taxes be concluded before the DOR certifies the
individual to the supreme court.
If, as a result of a hearing, the DOR affirms the tax delinquency of
a person who has applied for or who holds a license to practice law, the
license holder or applicant may appeal the DOR's determination to the
Dane County Circuit Court. If the Dane County Circuit Court upholds the
DOR's determination, the DOR then affirms or certifies the person's tax
delinquency to the state supreme court, and the court then determines
what license sanction (i.e., suspend, revoke, or deny a license to
practice), if any, to impose. These provisions first apply to hearings
that commence on the effective date of the budget bill (i.e., the day
after publication).
This change effectively brings the treatment of law licenses in line
with the treatment of all other professional licenses and credentials in
the state but also provides some special protections intended to help
guarantee due process for law licensees and avoid overburdening the OLR
with investigations that are not directly related to allegations that
the individual is unfit to practice law.
Currently, for all other state-issued professional licenses and
credentials, suspension of a license (or denial of an application for
licensure) is mandatory if the DOR's certification of delinquency is
reviewed and affirmed.
Civil jury instructions available on
Seventh Circuit Web site
The Seventh Circuit Judicial Council recently released Pattern Civil
Jury Instructions. The civil jury instructions complement the criminal
jury instructions, which were developed in 1998. Both sets of
instructions are available at U.S. Court of Appeals for the
Seventh Circuit.
Wisconsin Lawyer
