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AMERICAN BAR ASSOCIATION
STANDING COMMITTEE ON CLIENT PROTECTION
INFORMATIONAL REPORT TO THE HOUSE OF DELEGATES
Since its last informational report to the House of Delegates in February 2015, the Standing
Committee on Client Protection has continued to fulfill its mandate by promoting mechanisms to
reimburse client financial loss caused by lawyer misconduct, to arbitrate client-lawyer fee
disputes, and to mediate other client-lawyer disputes; by developing legal policy in the regulation
of the unlicensed practice of law; and by developing legal policy in the regulation of the practice
of law, including the many facets of multijurisdictional practice.
The Committee conducted a business meeting on Monday, March 9, 2015. As a cost-saving
measure, the Committee met via teleconference. The Committee discussed draft amendments to
the Model Rules on Client Trust Account Records that would require lawyers to maintain trust
account plans when holding client funds; proposed resolutions and reports drafted by other ABA
entities for presentation to the House of Delegates at the 2015 ABA Annual Meeting; the
questionnaire for the 2015 ABA Survey of Unauthorized Practice of Law Committees; and
planning for the 2nd ABA UPL School and 31st National Forum on Client Protection.
The Committee presented the 2nd ABA UPL School on April 17-18, 2015 at the Loyola
University Chicago School of Law. The UPL School provides a central and unique forum for
those charged with preventing and prosecuting the unauthorized practice of law to discuss
current and anticipated issues related to this subject and to learn from their colleagues about best
practices. The program was co-sponsored by the ABA Commission on Immigration and the
ABA Commission on Hispanic Rights and Responsibilities, with chief financial co-sponsorship
from the Illinois Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission. The 2nd UPL School
focused on the tension between providing adequate access to justice and protecting consumer
interests from the unauthorized practice of law. Topics for the two-day program included the
unauthorized practice of immigration law, technology, sanctions as an effective deterrent to the
unauthorized practice, and resolving the tension between consumer protection and access to
justice. Paula Littlewood, Executive Director of the Washington State Bar Association, provided
opening remarks. Registrants and panelists for the 2nd UPL School include representatives from
state and federal enforcement agencies, regulation counsel, UPL Committee members and staff,
representatives from community groups and legal service agencies, law professors, and private
practitioners.
Questionnaires for the 2015 Survey on Unlicensed Practice of Law Committees were
electronically distributed to state UPL Committees or enforcement agencies. The mechanisms for
the enforcement of UPL statutes vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction and the survey seeks to
track changes in claims for UPL violations and trends in enforcement. The results of the survey
are provided to courts, bar associations, lawyers, members of the public, and news media
nationwide. The Survey will be published in September 2015. We are hopeful that the survey
results will include a response from every jurisdiction in the United States.
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The Committee has circulated for comment revised draft amendments to the ABA Model Rules
for Client Trust Account Records. The proposed amendments would require lawyers who hold
client funds in trust to develop and maintain written trust account plans for all client trust
accounts.
The Committee held a business meeting on Friday, May 29, 2015 in Denver. Topics discussed
included: the 2nd ABA UPL School, draft amendments to the Model Rules for Client Trust
Account Records, the New York State Bar Association’s proposed standards for representation
of clients in immigration cases, issues associated with the electronic disbursement of lawyers’
fund reimbursements, and the North Carolina Dental Board decision, its potential impact on UPL
enforcement, and the Committee’s efforts in light of the decision.
On May 29-30, 2015, the Committee presented the 31st National Forum on Client Protection in
Denver. The Annual Forum was held in conjunction with the National Conference of
Professional Responsibility and the National Specialization Roundtable. The Forum is the
premier educational and informational program for professionals working in the area of client
protection. The Forum allows leaders in the client protection community to interact with
nationally recognized experts in the area of professional responsibility and explore the
development of lawyer regulatory trends, as well as new and innovative mechanisms for client
protection. Program topics for the 31st National Forum included: fund challenges arising from
multistate and multijurisdictional practice; challenges facing lawyer vs. nonlawyer administrators
of lawyers’ funds for client protection; client protection mechanisms that work, but are not
widely adopted; and “Hot Topics in Client Protection.” The Committee hosted its Annual Town
Hall Meeting and the National Client Protection Organization held its Annual Difficult Claims
Workshop.
On June 27, 2015, Client Protection Counsel Thomas served as a panelist for the Indiana Legal
Conclave session “The Practice of Law and the Future of the Legal Profession: Holding the Line
or Evolving with the Times?” Counsel Thomas’s remarks focused on trends in defining the
practice of law and the delivery of legal services including a discussion of the Washington
Limited Legal License Technician Rule and similar models of authorized nonlawyer practice, the
impact of the North Carolina Dental Board decision on UPL enforcement, and the tension
between protecting the public and protecting the profession.
Respectfully submitted,
Lindsey D. Draper, Chair
Standing Committee on Client Protection
August 2015
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