Source: https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/45/1614.3
Timestamp: 2016-02-08 06:53:03
Document Index: 760448286

Matched Legal Cases: ['art 1614', '§ 1614', '§ 1614', 'art 1620', 'art 1627', '§ 1614', 'art 1614']

45 CFR 1614.3 - Range of activities. | US Law | LII / Legal Information Institute
CFR › Title 45 › Subtitle B › Chapter XVI › Part 1614 › Section 1614.3 45 CFR 1614.3 - Range of activities.
§ 1614.3
Activities undertaken by the recipient to meet the requirements of this part must include the direct delivery of legal assistance to eligible clients through programs such as organizedpro bono plans, reduced fee plans, judicare panels, private attorney contracts, or those modified pro bono plans which provide for the payment of nominal fees by eligible clients and/or organized referral systems; except that payment of attorney's fees through “revolving litigation fund” systems, as described in § 1614.5 of this part, shall neither be used nor funded under this part nor funded with any LSC support;
Activities undertaken by recipients to meet the requirements of this part may also include, but are not limited to:
Support provided by private attorneys to the recipient in its delivery of legal assistance to eligible clients on either a reduced fee orpro bono basis through the provision of community legal education, training, technical assistance, research, advice and counsel; co-counseling arrangements; or the use of private law firm facilities, libraries, computer-assisted legal research systems or other resources; and
Support provided by the recipient in furtherance of activities undertaken pursuant to this Section including the provision of training, technical assistance, research, advice and counsel, or the use of recipient facilities, libraries, computer assisted legal research systems or other resources.
The specific methods to be undertaken by a recipient to involve private attorneys in the provision of legal assistance to eligible clients will be determined by the recipient's taking into account the following factors:
The priorities established pursuant topart 1620 of these regulations;
The effective and economic delivery of legal assistance to eligible clients;
The linguistic and cultural barriers to effective advocacy.
The actual or potential conflicts of interest between specific participating attorneys and individual eligible clients; and
The substantive and practical expertise, skills, and willingness to undertake new or unique areas of the law of participating attorneys.
Systems designed to provide direct services to eligible clients by private attorneys on either apro bono or reduced fee basis, shall include at a minimum, the following components:
Intake and case acceptance procedures consistent with the recipient's established priorities in meeting the legal needs of eligible clients;
Case assignments which ensure the referral of cases according to the nature of the legal problems involved and the skills, expertise, and substantive experience of the participating attorney;
Case oversight and follow-up procedures to ensure the timely disposition of cases to achieve, if possible, the result desired by the client and the efficient and economical utilization of recipient resources; and
Access by private attorneys to LSC recipient resources, including those of LSC national and state support centers, that provide back-up on substantive and procedural issues of the law.
The recipient shall demonstrate compliance with this part by utilizing financial systems and procedures and maintaining supporting documentation to identify and account separately for costs related to the PAI effort. Such systems and records shall meet the requirements of the Corporation's Audit and Accounting Guide for Recipients and Auditors and shall have the following characteristics:
They shall accurately identify and account for:
The recipient's administrative, overhead, staff, and support costs related to PAI activities. Non-personnel costs shall be allocated on the basis of reasonable operating data. All methods of allocating common costs shall be clearly documented. If any direct or indirect time of staff attorneys or paralegals is to be allocated as a cost to PAI, such costs must be documented by time sheets accounting for the time those employees have spent on PAI activities. The timekeeping requirement does not apply to such employees as receptionists, secretaries, intake personnel or bookkeepers; however, personnel cost allocations for non-attorney or non-paralegal staff should be based on other reasonable operating data which is clearly documented;
Payments to private attorneys for support or direct client services rendered. The recipient shall maintain contracts on file which set forth payment systems, hourly rates, and maximum allowable fees. Bills and/or invoices from private attorneys shall be submitted before payments are made. Encumbrances shall not be included in calculating whether a recipient has met the requirement of this part;
Contractual payments to individuals or organizations that undertake administrative, support, and/or direct services to eligible clients on behalf of the recipient consistent with the provisions of this part. Contracts concerning transfer of LSC funds for PAI activities shall require that such funds be accounted for by the recipient in accordance with LSC guidelines, including the requirements of the Audit and Accounting Guide for Recipients and Auditors and45 CFR part 1627;
Other such actual costs as may be incurred by the recipient in this regard.
Support and expenses relating to the PAI effort must be reported separately in the recipient's year-end audit. This shall be done by establishing a separate fund or providing a separate schedule in the financial statement to account for the entire PAI allocation. Recipients are not required to establish separate bank accounts to segregate funds allocated to PAI. Auditors are required to perform sufficient audit tests to enable them to render an opinion on the recipient's compliance with the requirements of this part.
In private attorney models, attorneys may be reimbursed for actual costs and expenses. Attorney's fees paid may not exceed 50% of the localprevailing market rate for that type of service.
All records pertaining to a recipient's PAI requirements which do not contain client confidences or secrets as defined by applicable state law shall be made available for inspection and review by LSC auditors and monitors during regular business hours.
§ 1614.3 Definitions.
Attorney means a person who is authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction in which assistance is rendered. For purposes of this part, attorney does not have the meaning stated in 45 CFR 1600.1.
Incubator project means a program that provides legal training and support, for a limited period of time, to law students, law graduates, or attorneys who are establishing, or upon graduation and bar admission intend to establish, their own independent law practices.
Law graduate means an individual who, within the last two years, has completed the education and/or training requirements necessary for application to the bar in any U.S. state or territory.
Law student means an individual who is, or has been, enrolled, full-time or part-time, within the past year, and not expelled from:
(1) A law school that can provide the student with a degree that is a qualification for application to the bar in any U.S. state or territory; or
(2) An apprenticeship program that can provide the student with sufficient qualifications for application to the bar in any U.S. state or territory.
Legal assistance means service on behalf of a client or clients that is specific to the client's or clients' unique circumstances, involves a legal analysis that is tailored to the client's or clients' factual situation, and involves applying legal judgment in interpreting the particular facts and in applying relevant law to the facts presented.
Legal information means substantive legal information not tailored to address a person's specific problem and that does not involve applying legal judgment or recommending a specific course of action.
Other professional means an individual, not engaged in the practice of law and not employed by the recipient, providing services in furtherance of the recipient's provision of legal information or legal assistance to eligible clients. For example, a paralegal representing a client in a Supplemental Security Income (SSI) case, an accountant providing tax advice to an eligible client, or an attorney not authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction in which the recipient is located would fit within the definition of other professional. An individual granted a limited license to practice law by a body authorized by court rule or state law to grant such licenses in the jurisdiction in which the recipient is located would also meet the definition of other professional.
PAI Clinic means an activity under this part in which private attorneys, law students, law graduates, or other professionals are involved in providing legal information and/or legal assistance to the public at a specified time and location.
Private attorney means an attorney. Private attorney does not include:
(1) An attorney employed half time or more per calendar year by an LSC recipient or subrecipient; or
(2) An attorney employed less than half time by an LSC recipient or subrecipient acting within the terms of his or her employment by the LSC recipient or subrecipient; or
(3) An attorney acting within the terms of his or her employment by a non-profit organization whose primary purpose is the delivery of free civil legal services to low-income individuals; or
(4) An attorney acting within the terms of his or her employment by a component of a non-profit organization, where the component's primary purpose is the delivery of free civil legal services to low-income individuals.
Screen for eligibility means to screen individuals for eligibility using the same criteria recipients use to determine an individual's eligibility for cases accepted by the recipient and whether LSC funds or non-LSC funds can be used to provide legal assistance (e.g., income and assets, citizenship, eligible alien status, within priorities, applicability of LSC restrictions).
Subrecipient has the meaning stated in 45 CFR 1627.2(b)(1), except that as used in this part, such term shall not include entities that meet the definition of subrecipient solely because they receive more than $25,000 from an LSC recipient for services provided through a fee-for-service arrangement, such as services provided by a private law firm or attorney representing a recipient's clients on a contract or judicare basis.
Title 45 published on 2015-10-01The following are ALL rules, proposed rules, and notices (chronologically) published in the Federal Register relating to 45 CFR Part 1614 after this date.2015-12-04; vol. 80 # 233 - Friday, December 4, 201580 FR 75847 - Outside Practice of Law; Fee-Generating Cases; Financial Eligibility; Private Attorney Involvement; Restrictions on Legal Assistance to Aliens; Timekeeping Requirement