COMPLIANCE WITH THE PROHIBITION ON THE UNAUTHORIZED PRACTICE OF LAW (A 50-STATE SURVEY) REVISED AUGUST 2020 WWW.LAWCLERK.LEGAL 888.479.5728 [email protected] Table of Contents Section I - Introduction .............................................................................................................................. 1 LAWCLERK’s Terms of Use ............................................................................................................ 2 Section I – Guidance From the Model Rules and Elsewhere .................................................................. 4 A. LAWCLERK complies with Model Rule 5.3. ........................................................................... 4 B. LAWCLERK Complies with Model Rule 5.5. ......................................................................... 6 Section III - 50 State Review and Analysis ............................................................................................... 9 Alabama. .............................................................................................................................................. 9 Alaska. ................................................................................................................................................ 11 Arizona. .............................................................................................................................................. 13 Arkansas. ........................................................................................................................................... 15 Colorado............................................................................................................................................. 23 Connecticut. ....................................................................................................................................... 30 District of Columbia. ........................................................................................................................ 33 Florida. ............................................................................................................................................... 35 Georgia. .............................................................................................................................................. 37 Hawaii. ............................................................................................................................................... 42 Idaho................................................................................................................................................... 43 Illinois. ................................................................................................................................................ 44 Indiana. .............................................................................................................................................. 46 Iowa. ................................................................................................................................................... 49 Kansas. ............................................................................................................................................... 50 Kentucky. ........................................................................................................................................... 52 Louisiana. ........................................................................................................................................... 56 Maine. ................................................................................................................................................. 58 Massachusetts. ................................................................................................................................... 60 Michigan. ........................................................................................................................................... 62 Minnesota. .......................................................................................................................................... 65 -ii- Mississippi. ......................................................................................................................................... 66 Missouri. ............................................................................................................................................ 67 Montana. ............................................................................................................................................ 68 Nebraska. ........................................................................................................................................... 70 Nevada. ............................................................................................................................................... 72 New Hampshire. ................................................................................................................................ 73 New Jersey. ........................................................................................................................................ 78 New Mexico. ....................................................................................................................................... 80 New York. .......................................................................................................................................... 80 North Carolina. ................................................................................................................................. 82 North Dakota. .................................................................................................................................... 84 Ohio. ................................................................................................................................................... 85 Oklahoma........................................................................................................................................... 88 Oregon.. .............................................................................................................................................. 89 Pennsylvania. ..................................................................................................................................... 90 Rhode Island. ..................................................................................................................................... 91 South Carolina. ................................................................................................................................. 95 South Dakota. .................................................................................................................................... 96 Tennessee. .......................................................................................................................................... 98 Texas................................................................................................................................................... 99 Utah. ................................................................................................................................................. 100 Vermont. .......................................................................................................................................... 101 Virginia. ........................................................................................................................................... 103 Washington. ..................................................................................................................................... 104 West Virginia. .................................................................................................................................. 106 Wisconsin. ........................................................................................................................................ 107 Wyoming. ......................................................................................................................................... 107 -iii- Section I - Introduction LAWCLERK™ is an online legal marketplace. LAWCLERK allows lawyers who are admitted to and in good standing with their respective state’s bar association (“Attorneys”) to engage other lawyers who are barred and in good standing in their jurisdiction (“Lawclerks”)1 to provide discrete legal-related services in a paraprofessional capacity. These services include, but are not limited to, the preparation of memorandums, pleadings, written discovery requests, and agreements. The use of LAWCLERK by Lawclerks and Attorneys encourages cost-effective delivery of legal services and reduces the spiraling cost of civil litigation.2 Yet, Attorneys, Lawclerks, and others may be concerned that offering or accepting assignments through LAWCLERK may raise ethical concerns, specifically the unauthorized practice of law. This white paper will assure all parties that the use of LAWCLERK does not constitute the unauthorized practice of law in any jurisdiction. The definition of “the practice of law” is established by each jurisdiction and therefore, the definition varies from one jurisdiction to another.3 Because of the divergent definitions of what constitutes the practice of law, this white paper undertakes a state by state analysis of how LAWCLERK