Opinion ID: 1394384
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: Control of the practice of law by this Court and the legislature

Text: The judiciary is necessarily the sole arbiter of what constitutes the practice of law. Statutes may aid by providing machinery and criminal penalties but may not extend the privilege of practicing law to persons not admitted to practice by the judiciary. Hulse v. Criger, 363 Mo. 26, 247 S.W.2d 855 (Mo. banc 1952). Such statutes are merely in aid of, and do not supersede or detract from, the power of the judiciary to define and control the practice of law. Automobile Club of Mo. v. Hoffmeister, 338 S.W.2d 348, 354-55 (Mo.App.1960). Thus, one who may be in violation of the text of section 484.020 may defend a claim under the statute by showing a conflict between the text and activities that this Court has determined to be the authorized practice of law. [5] Midwest fails to demonstrate that its activities constitute the authorized practice of law as determined by this Court. This Court has prohibited a company and its non-lawyer agents, servants, employees, and trust associates from drawing, preparing, or assisting in the preparation of trust workbooks, trusts, wills, and powers of attorney, for valuable consideration, for Missouri residents without the direct supervision of an independent licensed attorney selected by and representing those individuals. In re Mid-America Living Trust Associates, Inc., 927 S.W.2d 855, 871 (Mo. banc 1996). Escrow companies may not charge a separate fee for document preparation or vary their customary charges for closing services based upon whether documents are to be prepared in the transaction. In re First Escrow, Inc., 840 S.W.2d 839, 849 (Mo. banc 1992). Similarly, this Court noted that the charging of a separate additional charge tends to place emphasis on conveyancing and legal drafting as a business rather than on the business of being a real estate broker. Hulse at 863. With respect to Midwest, no conflict exists between section 484.020 and this Court's regulation of the practice of law.