07'9Gir'L

IN THE SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF MONTANA

PR 06-0422

IN RE PETITION OF KATHLEEN L.

SMITHGALL

FILED

JUN 1 5 2021

O R D E Greenwood

Clerk of Supreme Court

State of Montana

Kathleen L. Smithgall has petitioned for 1) leave to file a late application to sit for

the July 2021 Montana Bar Examination, 2) waiver of the three-year test requirement for

the Multistate Professional Responsibility Examination (MPRE), and 3) for temporary

admission pending her taking of the bar exam.

Smithgall is seeking to work as an Assistant Solicitor General in the office of the

Montana Attorney General, and is currently working as a law clerk to the Solicitor General.

Smithgall received an offer of employment in that office after the registration deadline for

the July 2021 administration of the Montana Bar Exam. Previously, Smithgall petitioned

for either waiver of the bar admission requirement that an applicant shall have passed the

UBE within three years for purposes of admission upon transfer, or granting of temporary

or provisional admission pending completion of the process of admission upon motion.

Under the Rules of Admission, the Court was unable to grant either request, and denied the

petition. See In re Petition of Kathleen L. Smithgall, Order, May 25, 2021.

This petition establishes good cause for subniission of a late application to sit for

the July 2021 exam. However, it is the Court's understanding, informally confirmed by

the State Bar, that it is now too late for an applicant to complete the administrative

prerequisites to qualify for the July 2021 testing. If that is correct, Smithgall would not be

able to qualify to take the exam until the administration in February 2022.

We have granted temporary or provisional admission to qualified applicants

pending their passage of the bar exam. As we explained in Petition of Gosch, "Nemporary

admission until sitting for the bar exam may be appropriate in circumstances where a

candidate does not qualify for admission on motion or for transfer of a UBE score."

Petition of Gosch, 07-0303, March 7, 2016. As Smithgall notes, we granted temporary

admission to the previous Solicitor pending his passage of the bar exam. In the Matter of

06/15/2021

Case Number: PR 06-0422
the Temporary Admission to Practice ofDale Schowengerdt, 07-00303, October 29, 2014.

David M.S. Dewhirst, Solicitor General, has submitted an affidavit in which he states that

granting temporary admission to Smithgall would advance the interests of the State, and

that he would supervise Smithgall's work pending permanent admission. As explained

above, it is possible that Smithgall will not be able to sit for the bar exam until February

2022, and thus would require temporary admission until then. While this is a significant

amount of time, Smithgall is in the unique position, explained in our previous order, of not

being able to qualify under the Rules for admission either by score transfer or upon motion

until December of 2022. Smithgall has established good cause for temporary admission

until taking the bar exam, whether in July 2021 or in February 2022.

Lastly, Smithgall requests waiver of the three-year test requirement for the

Multistate Professional Responsibility Examination (MPRE). By rule, applicants for

admission upon examination must provide evidence of the requisite score on an MPRE

taken within three years of sitting for the Montana bar exam. Rule VII.A.3, Rules of

Admission. According to the petition, Smithgall passed the MPRE in 2016, has practiced

since December 2017, and "at no time has Petitioner faced any disciplinary or ethical

issues." Smithgall has established good cause for waiver. Therefore,

IT IS ORDERED that the Petitioner's request for leave to submit a late application

to take the Montana Bar Examination in July 2021 is GRANTED. However, taking the

exarn at that administration is subject to the timely cornpletion of all exam prerequisites.

IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the request for waiver of the three-year test

requirement for submission of a prior UBE score in conjunction with Petitioner's

admission by examination is GRANTED.

IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the request for temporary admission to the State

Bar of Montana pending Petitioner's taking of the bar exarn in July 2021 or February 2022

is GRANTED. The Clerk of this Court will adrninister the usual oath and issue a temporary

certificate granting Petitioner permission to practice law. This admission applies only

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while Petitioner is employed with the Office of the Attorney General, which shall notify

the Court if Petitioner ceases to be employed by that office.

The Clerk is directed to provide copies of this order to Petitioner and to the State

Bar of Montana.

DATED this )5 -Jay of June, 2021.

Chicf Justice

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