Case Title: In Re: Amendments to the Rules of the Supreme Court Relating to Admissions to the Bar

Citation: 

Docket Number: SC16-2252

State: florida

Court: Florida Supreme Court

Date: 2017-11-30T00:00:00Z

Document:
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Supreme Court of Florida 
 
 
____________ 
 
No. SC16-2252 
____________ 
 
 
IN RE:  AMENDMENTS TO THE RULES OF THE SUPREME COURT 
RELATING TO ADMISSIONS TO THE BAR. 
 
[November 30, 2017] 
 
PER CURIAM. 
 
This matter is before the Court for consideration of proposed amendments to 
the Rules of the Supreme Court Relating to Admissions to the Bar.  We have 
jurisdiction.  See art. V, § 15, Fla. Const. 
BACKGROUND 
The Florida Board of Bar Examiners (Board) has filed a petition to amend 
the Rules of the Supreme Court Relating to Admissions to the Bar (Rules) 3-14 
(Bar Application and Supporting Documentation), 3-23 (Specifications), 4-13.4 
(Alternative Method of Educational Qualification), and 4-23.1 (Transfer of Score).   
After submission to the Court, the proposed amendments were published for 
comment in The Florida Bar News.  The deans of multiple Florida law schools 
filed a comment supporting the proposed amendments to rule 4-23.1.  Florida Bar 
 
 
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member, Timothy P. Chinaris, filed a comment supporting the proposed 
amendments to rules 3-14, 3-23, and 4-23.1. 
 
Upon consideration of the Board’s petition and the comments filed, we 
adopt the amendments as proposed by the Board. 
AMENDMENTS 
Rule 3-14 (Bar Application and Supporting Documentation)   
In its petition, the Board explains that it is developing an applicant portal to 
allow all communications between the Board and applicants for admission to The 
Florida Bar to be done electronically.  Thus, under rule 3-14 as amended, in lieu of 
a notarized paper copy of the bar application, an e-signature is required and the 
jurat on the application is modified to reflect this.  Further, rule 3-14.1 (Filed as an 
Applicant) and rule 3-14.2 (Filed as a Registrant) are amended to delete the 
requirement that the bar application be “sworn,” and rule 3-14.1(f) is amended to 
require, instead of an “affidavit . . . attesting that the applicant has read Chapter 4, 
Rules of Professional Conduct, and Chapter 5, Rules Regulating Trust Accounts,” 
an online form “acknowledgement of compliance . . . declaring” the same.  The 
name of this form is changed to “Acknowledgement of Compliance,” and the 
statement therein is amended to reference an e-signature PIN, rather than 
notarization.  Rule 3-14.3 (Defective Applications) is amended to remove a 
reference to notarization.   
 
 
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Rule 3-23 (Specifications)   
Similar to the amendments to rule 3-14, rule 3-23 is amended in order to 
accommodate electronic communication and submission of documents.  Currently, 
Specifications are served on applicants by certified mail, and a sworn and notarized 
response, with four copies, is required to be provided to the Board by mail.  The 
Board states that it wishes to allow the service of Specifications by both mail and 
electronically through the portal.  Rule 3-23 is amended to replace the requirement 
that a response to Specifications be “filed in the form of a sworn, notarized 
answer,” with the requirement that it be “served in the form of a verified answer.”  
This will allow applicants to serve the answer on the Board through the portal, 
without having to mail the original to the Board.     
Rule 4-13.4 (Alternative Method of Educational Qualification)   
This rule sets forth the requirements for an applicant who has not graduated 
from an accredited law school and who wishes to use the alternative method of 
establishing educational qualifications to sit for the bar examination.  Currently, 
the rule covers those engaged in the practice of law for at least ten years in the 
District of Columbia, in other states, or in the federal courts of the United States or 
its territories, possessions, or protectorates.  This rule is amended to clarify that 
federal courts are not limited to those courts established under Article III of the 
United States Constitution.  The Board states that this clarification will ensure that 
 
 
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the work product of an attorney who practiced in non-Article III federal courts, 
such as immigration courts, could be considered by the Board.  This rule is also 
amended to expressly disqualify applicants who have been suspended or disbarred 
from the practice of law in the ten years prior to applying for admission to The 
Florida Bar.  The Board is of the opinion, and we agree, that any such applicant 
does not meet the requirement in rule 4-13.4(c) that an applicant under the 
alternative method must be “a lawyer of high ability whose reputation for 
professional competence is above reproach.”   
4-23.1 (Transfer of Score) 
Rule 4-23.1 is amended to allow an applicant to transfer a score obtained on 
the Multistate Bar Examination (MBE) in another state, as long as the transferred 
scaled score meets the requirements of rule 4-26.2 (Pass/Fail Line)—the scaled 
score would have to be 136 or higher under the individual method—and as long as 
it is obtained within the timeframe required under rule 4-18.1—within 25 months 
of the date of the administration of any part of the examination that is passed.  In 
1983, we adopted the current rule prohibiting the transfer of scores because at that 
time, there were inconsistencies in the administration and scoring of the MBE 
administered in other jurisdictions.  However, since then, the National Conference 
of Bar Examiners has established very specific guidelines and procedures for the 
administration of the MBE, making the transfer of scores feasible and acceptable.   
 
 
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CONCLUSION 
 
Accordingly, the Rules of the Supreme Court Relating to Admissions to the 
Bar are hereby amended, as set forth in the appendix to this opinion.  New 
language is indicated by underscoring; deletions are indicated by struck-through 
type.  The amendments shall become effective immediately upon release of this 
opinion. 
 
It is so ordered. 
LABARGA, C.J., and PARIENTE, LEWIS, QUINCE, CANADY, POLSTON, 
and LAWSON, JJ., concur. 
 
THE FILING OF A MOTION FOR REHEARING SHALL NOT ALTER THE 
EFFECTIVE DATE OF THESE AMENDMENTS.  
 
Original Proceeding – Rules of the Supreme Court of Florida Relating to 
Admissions to the Bar 
 
Elizabeth J. Walters, Chair, Scott N. Richardson, Past Chair, Michele A. Gavagni, 
Executive Director, and James T. Almon, General Counsel, Florida Board of Bar 
Examiners, Tallahassee, Florida,  
 
 
for Petitioner 
 
Leticia M. Diaz, Dean, Barry University – Dwayne O. Andreas School of Law, 
Orlando, Florida; Angela Felecia Epps, Dean, Florida A&M University College of 
Law, Orlando, Florida; Scott DeVito, Dean, Florida Coastal School of Law, 
Jacksonville, Florida; Tawia Ansah, Acting Dean, R. Alexander Acosta, Past Dean, 
Florida International University College of Law, Miami, Florida; Jon M. Garon, 
Dean, Nova Southeastern University – Shepard Broad College of Law, Fort 
Lauderdale, Florida; Christopher M. Pietruszkiewicz, Dean, Stetson University 
College of Law, Gulfport, Florida; Alfredo García, J.D., Dean, St. Thomas 
University School of Law, Miami Gardens, Florida; Laura Ann Rosenbury, Dean, 
University of Florida – Fredric G. Levin College of Law, Gainesville, Florida; 
 
 
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Patricia D. White, Dean, University of Miami School of Law, Coral Gables, 
Florida; and Timothy P. Chinaris, Nashville, Tennessee,  
 
 
Responding with Comments
 
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APPENDIX 
3-14.1 Filed as an Applicant. Applicants are required to file complete and 
sworn Bar Applications. Transcripts required by this rule must be sent directly to 
the board from the educational institutions. The application will not be deemed 
complete until all of the following items have been received by the board: 
(a) 
[NO CHANGE] 
(b) 
[NO CHANGE] 
(c) [NO CHANGE] 
(d) 
[NO CHANGE] 
(e) [NO CHANGE] 
(f) an affidavitacknowledgment of compliance, filed on a form available 
on the board’s website attestingdeclaring that the applicant has read Chapter 4, 
Rules of Professional Conduct, and Chapter 5, Rules Regulating Trust Accounts, 
of the Rules Regulating The Florida Bar; and 
(g) 
[NO CHANGE] 
3-14.2 Filed as a Registrant. A registrant is required to file a complete and 
swornRegistrant Bar Application. Transcripts required by this rule must be sent 
directly to the board from the educational institutions. The application will not be 
deemed complete until all of the following items have been received by the board: 
3-14.3 Defective Applications. A Bar Application or Registrant Bar 
Application initially filed in a defective condition (e.g., without notarization, 
without supporting documents, or having blank or incomplete items on the 
application) may delay the initiation or the processing of the background 
investigation. A Bar Application or Registrant Bar Application filed in a defective 
condition will be accepted, but a fee of $150 will be assessed. 
3-23 Specifications. Specifications are formal charges filed in those cases 
where the board has cause to believe that the applicant or registrant is not qualified 
for admission to The Florida Bar. If the board votes to prepare and file 
Specifications, the Specifications are served on the applicant or registrant. The 
response to Specifications must be filedserved in the form of a verifiedsworn, 
 
 
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notarized answer to the Specifications within 2025 days from receiptof service of 
the Specifications. 
4-13.4 Alternative Method of Educational Qualification. 
(a) 
[NO CHANGE] 
(1) evidence as the board may require that the applicant was engaged 
in the practice of law for at least 10 years in the District of Columbia, in 
other states of the United States of America, or in federal courts of the 
United States or its territories, possessions, or protectorates (federal courts 
are not limited to Article III Courts), and was in good standing at the bar of 
the jurisdictions in which the applicant practiced, and was not suspended or 
disbarred from the practice of law in the 10 years prior to applying for 
admission to The Florida Bar; and  
(2) [NO CHANGE] 
4-23.1 Transfer of Score.  A score achieved by an applicant on the 
Multistate Bar Examination administered in a jurisdiction other than the State of 
Florida will not be transferred to or recognized by the boardbe accepted by the 
board if the applicant achieved the required scaled score under rule 4-26.2, under 
the individual method, within the timeframe required under rule 4-18.1.  The score 
must be transferred directly to the board by the National Conference of Bar 
Examiners.