North Carolina Administrative Code › Title 27 - STATE BAR › Chapter 01 - RULES AND REGULATIONS FOR THE NORTH CAROLINA STATE BAR › Subchapter B - DISCIPLINE AND DISABILITY RULES › Section .0100 - DISCIPLINE AND DISABILITY OF ATTORNEYS › Section 01B .0103 - DEFINITIONS

Current through Register Vol. 39, No. 2, July 15, 2024
Subject to additional definitions contained in other
					 provisions of this subchapter, the following words and phrases, when used in
					 this subchapter, will have, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, the
					 meanings given to them in this rule.
(1) Admonition - a written form of discipline
				  imposed in cases in which an attorney has committed a minor violation of the
				  Rules of Professional Conduct.
(2)
				  Appellate division - the appellate division of the general court of
				  justice.
(3) Board - the Board of
				  Continuing Legal Education.
(4)
				  Board of Continuing Legal Education - a standing committee of the council
				  responsible for the administration of a program of mandatory continuing legal
				  education and law practice assistance.
(5) Censure - a written form of discipline
				  more serious than a reprimand issued in cases in which an attorney has violated
				  one or more provisions of the Rules of Professional Conduct and has caused
				  significant harm or potential significant harm to a client, the administration
				  of justice, the profession, or a member of the public, but the misconduct does
				  not require suspension of the attorney's license.
(6) Certificate of conviction - a certified
				  copy of any judgment wherein a member of the North Carolina State Bar is
				  convicted of a criminal offense.
(7) Chairperson of the Grievance Committee -
				  councilor appointed to serve as chairperson of the Grievance Committee of the
				  North Carolina State Bar.
(8)
				  Commission - the Disciplinary Hearing Commission of the North Carolina State
				  Bar.
(9) Commission chairperson -
				  the chairperson of the Disciplinary Hearing Commission of the North Carolina
				  State Bar.
(10) Complainant or
				  complaining witness - any person who has complained of the conduct of any
				  member of the North Carolina State Bar to the North Carolina State
				  Bar.
(11) Complaint - a formal
				  pleading filed in the name of the North Carolina State Bar with the commission
				  against a member of the North Carolina State Bar after a finding of probable
				  cause.
(12) Consolidation of cases
				  - a hearing by a hearing panel of multiple charges, whether related or
				  unrelated in substance, brought against one defendant.
(13) Council - the Council of the North
				  Carolina State Bar.
(14) Councilor
				  - a member of the Council of the North Carolina State Bar.
(15) Counsel - the counsel of the North
				  Carolina State Bar appointed by the council.
(16) Court or courts of this state - a court
				  authorized and established by the constitution or laws of the state of North
				  Carolina.
(17) Criminal offense
				  showing professional unfitness - the commission of, attempt to commit,
				  conspiracy to commit, solicitation or subornation of any felony or any crime
				  that involves false swearing, misrepresentation, deceit, extortion, theft,
				  bribery, embezzlement, false pretenses, fraud, interference with the judicial
				  or political process, larceny, misappropriation of funds or property, overthrow
				  of the government, perjury, willful failure to file a tax return, or any other
				  offense involving moral turpitude or showing professional unfitness.
(18) Defendant - a member of the North
				  Carolina State Bar against whom a finding of probable cause has been
				  made.
(19) Disabled or disability -
				  a mental or physical condition which significantly impairs the professional
				  judgment, performance, or competence of an attorney.
(20) Grievance - alleged
				  misconduct.
(21) Grievance
				  Committee - the Grievance Committee of the North Carolina State Bar or any of
				  its panels acting as the Grievance Committee respecting the grievances and
				  other matters referred to it by the chairperson of the Grievance
				  Committee.
(22) Hearing panel - a
				  hearing panel designated under Rule .0108(a)(2), .0114(d), .0114(x),
				  .0118(b)(2), .0125(a)(6), .0125(b)(7) or .0125(c)(2) of this
				  subchapter.
(23) Illicit drug - any
				  controlled substance as defined in the North Carolina Controlled Substances
				  Act, section 5, chapter 90, of the North Carolina General Statutes, or its
				  successor, which is used or possessed without a prescription or in violation of
				  the laws of this state or the United State s.
(24) Incapacity or incapacitated - condition
				  determined in a judicial proceeding under the laws of this or any other
				  jurisdiction that an attorney is mentally defective, an inebriate, mentally
				  disordered, or incompetent from want of understanding to manage his or her own
				  affairs by reason of the excessive use of intoxicants, drugs, or other
				  cause.
(25) Investigation - the
				  gathering of information with respect to alleged misconduct, alleged
				  disability, or a petition for reinstatement.
(26) Investigator - any person designated to
				  assist in the investigation of alleged misconduct or facts pertinent to a
				  petition for reinstatement.
(27)
				  Lawyer Assistance Program Board - the Lawyer Assistance Program Board of the
				  North Carolina State Bar.
(28)
				  Letter of caution - communication from the Grievance Committee to an attorney
				  stating that the past conduct of the attorney, while not the basis for
				  discipline, is unprofessional or not in accord with accepted professional
				  practice.
(29) Letter of notice - a
				  communication to a respondent setting forth the substance of a
				  grievance.
(30) Letter of warning -
				  written communication from the Grievance Committee or the commission to an
				  attorney stating that past conduct of the attorney, while not the basis for
				  discipline, is an unintentional, minor, or technical violation of the Rules of
				  Professional Conduct and may be the basis for discipline if continued or
				  repeated.
(31) Member - a member of
				  the North Carolina State Bar.
(32)
				  Office of the Counsel - the office and staff maintained by the counsel of the
				  North Carolina State Bar.
(33)
				  Office of the secretary - the office and staff maintained by the
				  secretary-treasurer of the North Carolina State Bar.
(34) Party - after a complaint has been
				  filed, the North Carolina State Bar as plaintiff or the member as
				  defendant.
(35) Plaintiff - after a
				  complaint has been filed, the North Carolina State Bar.
(36) Preliminary hearing - hearing by the
				  Grievance Committee to determine whether probable cause exists.
(37) Probable cause - a finding by the
				  Grievance Committee that there is reasonable cause to believe that a member of
				  the North Carolina State Bar is guilty of misconduct justifying disciplinary
				  action.
(38) Reprimand - a written
				  form of discipline more serious than an admonition issued in cases in which a
				  defendant has violated one or more provisions of the Rules of Professional
				  Conduct and has caused harm or potential harm to a client, the administration
				  of justice, the profession, or a member of the public, but the misconduct does
				  not require a censure.
(39)
				  Respondent - a member of the North Carolina State Bar who has been accused of
				  misconduct or whose conduct is under investigation, but as to which conduct
				  there has not yet been a determination of whether probable cause
				  exists.
(40) Revised Rules of
				  Professional Conduct - the Rules of Professional Conduct adopted by the Council
				  of the North Carolina State Bar and approved by the North Carolina Supreme
				  Court effective July 24, 1997.
(41)
				  Rules of Professional Conduct - the Rules of Professional Conduct adopted by
				  the Council of the North Carolina State Bar and approved by the North Carolina
				  Supreme Court and which were in effect from October 7, 1985 through July 23,
				  1997.
(42) Secretary - the
				  secretary-treasurer of the North Carolina State Bar.
(43) Supreme Court - the Supreme Court of
				  North Carolina.
(44) Will - when
				  used in these rules, means a direction or order which is mandatory or
				  obligatory.
Authority
					 G.S.
					 84-23;
Readopted Eff. December 8,
					 1994;
Amended Eff. October 8, 2009; February 3, 2000; December 30,
					 1998.