GR 9 COVER SHEET   

 

Suggested Amendments GENERAL RULES (GR) Rules 1, 12.4, 24

Submitted by the Washington State Bar Association

 

A.           Name of Proponent:

 

Washington State Bar Association Daniel D. Clark, President

1325 Fourth Avenue, Suite 600

Seattle, WA 98101-2539

 

B.   Spokesperson:

Robert W. Henry, Associate Director for Regulatory Services Washington State Bar Association

1325 Fourth Avenue, Suite 600

Seattle, WA 98101-2539

roberth@wsba.org

 

C.           Purpose:

 

The primary purposes of the suggested amendments to the General Rules (GR) are to update the classification of the rules of general application, formally adopt and remove temporary status of the Rules for Enforcement of Limited License Legal Technician Conduct (ELLLTC), and to update rule citations as needed due to prior rule amendments.

The suggested amendments were presented at the September 2022 WSBA Board of Governors meeting where the Board of Governors voted unanimously to approve the suggested amendments and to submit them to the Washington Supreme Court.

Formal Adoption of LLLT Disciplinary Procedural Rules

 

The Rules for Enforcement of Limited License Legal Technician Conduct (ELLLTC) were implemented as an interim solution until new disciplinary procedural rules could be drafted for either LLLTs only or all licensed legal professionals combined. The ELLLTC are not published on the Court’s website as they are currently classified as a temporary solution. As there are now no plans to draft new disciplinary procedural rules for LLLTs to replace the ELLLTC, the ELLLTC should be formally adopted and published for clarity and transparency and to promote consistency with the other disciplinary procedural rules (i.e., ELC and ELPOC).   See Attachment No. 1 for the Court’s order approving the interim adoption of the ELLLTC.

GR 1 Part I: Listing New Bodies of Rules in Rules of General Application.

 

GR 1 provides the classification system for court rules. Part I of GR 1 lists the bodies of rules included in the Rules of General Application. The suggested amendments to GR 1 Part I, would add to the Rules of General Application, the following bodies of rules:

·         Limited Practice Officer Rules of Professional Conduct LPORPC

 

·         Limited License Legal Technician Rules of Professional Conduct LLLT RPC

 

·         Rules for Enforcement of Limited Practice Officer Conduct ELPOC

 

·         Rules for Enforcement of Limited License Legal Technician Conduct ELLLTC Currently, these bodies of rules are under APR 12, in the cases of the LPORPC

and ELPOC, or, under APR 28 in the case of the LLLT RPC. As discussed above, the Court is not publishing the ELLLTC.

Updating GR 12.4 and 24.

 

The remaining suggested amendments to the GR correct and update rule citations which are needed due to prior rule amendments.

D.           Hearing: A hearing is not requested.

 

E.           Expedited Consideration: Expedited consideration is not requested.

 

F.            Supporting Material:

 

1. Order Approving Interim Adoption of ELLLTC, Dated January 17, 2016 [NOTE: This document could not be reproduced by Rules Committee Staff and is available upon request.]