§ 1607.3 Composition. Cross Reference
Link to an amendment published at 89 FR 65551 , Aug. 12, 2024.
( a ) A recipient shall be incorporated in a State in which it provides legal assistance and shall have a governing body which reasonably reflects the interests of the eligible clients in the area served and which consists of members, each of whom is supportive of the purposes of the Act and has an interest in, and knowledge of, the delivery of quality legal services to the poor.
( b ) At least sixty percent (60%) of a governing body shall be attorney members. ( 1 ) A majority of the members of the governing body shall be attorney members appointed by the governing body(ies) of one or more State, county or municipal bar associations, the membership of which represents a majority of attorneys practicing law in the localities in which the recipient provides legal assistance. ( i ) Appointments may be made either by the bar association which represents a majority of attorneys in the recipient's service area or by bar associations which collectively represent a majority of the attorneys practicing law in the recipient's service area.
( ii ) Recipients that provide legal assistance in more than one State may provide that appointments of attorney members be made by the appropriate bar association(s) in the State(s) or locality(ies) in which the recipient's principal office is located or in which the recipient provides legal assistance.
( 2 ) Any additional attorney members may be selected by the recipient's governing body or may be appointed by other organizations designated by the recipient which have an interest in the delivery of legal services to the poor.
( 3 ) Appointments shall be made so as to insure that the attorney members reasonably reflect the diversity of the legal community and the population of the areas served by the recipient, including race, ethnicity, gender and other similar factors.
( c ) At least one-third of the members of a recipient's governing body must be eligible client members when initially appointed by the recipient. The recipient must solicit recommendations for eligible client members from a variety of appropriate groups designated by the recipient that may include, but are not limited to, client and neighborhood associations and community-based organizations that advocate for or deliver services or resources to the client community served by the recipient. Recipients should solicit recommendations from groups in a manner that reflects, to the extent possible, the variety of interests within the client community, and eligible client members should be selected so that they reasonably reflect the diversity of the eligible client population served by the recipient, including race, gender, ethnicity and other similar factors.
( d ) The remaining members of a governing body may be appointed by the recipient's governing body or selected in a manner described in the recipient's bylaws or policies, and the appointment or selection shall be made so that the governing body as a whole reasonably reflects the diversity of the areas served by the recipient, including race, ethnicity, gender and other similar factors.
( e ) The nonattorney members of a governing body shall not be dominated by persons serving as the representatives of a single association, group or organization, except that eligible client members may be selected from client organizations that are composed of coalitions of numerous smaller or regionally based client groups.
( f ) Members of a governing body may be selected by appointment, election, or other means consistent with this part and with the recipient's bylaws and applicable State law.
( g ) Recipients shall make reasonable and good faith efforts to insure that governing body vacancies are filled as promptly as possible.
( h ) Recipients may recommend candidates for governing body membership to the appropriate bar associations and other appointing groups and should consult with the appointing organizations to insure that: ( 1 ) Appointees meet the criteria for board membership set out in this part, including financial eligibility for persons appointed as eligible clients, bar admittance requirements for attorney board members, and the general requirements that all members be supportive of the purposes of the Act and have an interest in and knowledge of the delivery of legal services to the poor;
( 2 ) The particular categories of board membership and the board as a whole meet the diversity requirements described in §§ 1607.3(b)(3), 1607.3(c) and 1607.3(d);
( 3 ) Appointees do not have actual and significant individual or institutional conflicts of interest with the recipient or the recipient's client community that could reasonably be expected to influence their ability to exercise independent judgment as members of the recipient's governing body.
[59 FR 65254, Dec. 19, 1994, as amended at 84 FR 1407, Feb. 4, 2019]