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MARYLAND RULES OF PROCEDURE
APPENDIX: RULES OF PROFESSIONAL CONDUCT
PUBLIC SERVICE
AMEND
Rule 6.1 to add certain provisions concerning
aspirational
goals for pro bono publico legal service,
to state that the rule is aspirational
and not mandatory, to provide that noncompliance with the Rule is not grounds for disciplinary
action or other sanctions, to add certain commentary
concerning the
aspirational goals,
and to make certain stylistic changes, as follows:
Rule
6.1. Pro Bono Publico Legal
Service
(a) Professional
Responsibility
A lawyer
[should render public interest] has a professional
responsibility to render pro bono publico
legal service. [A lawyer may discharge this responsibility by
providing professional services at no fee or a reduced fee to persons
of limited means or to public service or charitable groups or organizations,
by service in activities for improving the law, the legal system or
the legal profession, or by financial support for organizations that
provide legal services to persons of limited means.]
(b) Discharge
of Professional Responsibility
A
lawyer in the full-time practice of law should aspire to render at least
50 hours per year of pro bono publico legal
service, and a lawyer in part-time practice should aspire to render
at least a pro rata number of hours.
(1) Unless a lawyer is prohibited by law
from rendering the legal services described below, a substantial portion
of the applicable hours should be devoted to rendering legal service,
without fee or expectation of fee, or at a substantially reduced fee,
to:
(A)
people of limited means;
(B)
charitable, religious, civic, community, governmental,
or educational organizations in matters designed primarily to address
the needs of people of limited means;
(C)
individuals, groups, or organizations seeking to secure or protect civil
rights, civil liberties, or public rights; or
(D)
charitable, religious, civic, community, governmental, or educational
organizations in matters in furtherance of their organizational purposes
when the payment of the standard legal fees would significantly deplete
the organization=s
economic resources or would otherwise be inappropriate.
(2) The
remainder of the applicable hours may be devoted to activities for improving
the law, the legal system, or the legal profession.
(3) A
lawyer also may discharge the professional responsibility set forth
in this Rule by contributing financial support to organizations that
provide legal services to persons of limited means.
(c) Effect
of Noncompliance
This
Rule is aspirational, not mandatory. Noncompliance with this Rule shall not be grounds
for disciplinary action or other sanctions.
COMMENT
The ABA House of Delegates has formally
acknowledged Athe basic responsibility of each lawyer
engaged in the practice of law to provide public interest legal services@ without
fee, or at a substantially reduced fee, in one or more of the following
areas: poverty law, civil rights
law, public rights law, charitable organization representation, and
the administration of justice. This
Rule expresses that policy but is not intended to be enforced through
the disciplinary process.
The rights and responsibilities of individuals
and organizations in the United
States are increasingly defined
in legal terms. As a consequence,
legal assistance in coping with the web of statutes, rules, and
regulations is imperative for persons of modest and limited means, as
well as for the relatively well-to-do.
The basic responsibility for providing
legal services for those unable to pay ultimately rests upon the individual
lawyer, and
personal involvement in the problems of the disadvantaged can be one
of the most rewarding experiences in the life of a lawyer. Every lawyer, regardless of professional prominence
or professional workload, should find time to participate in or otherwise
support the provision of legal services to the disadvantaged. The provision of free legal services to those
unable to pay reasonable fees continues to be an obligation of each
lawyer as well as the profession generally, but the efforts of individual
lawyers are often not enough to meet the need.
Thus, it has been necessary for the profession, the government,
and the courts to institute additional programs to provide legal
services. Accordingly, legal aid offices, lawyer referral
services, and other related programs have been developed, and
[others] more will be developed by the profession, the
government, and the courts.
Every lawyer should support all proper efforts to meet this need
for legal services.
The goal of 50 hours per
year for pro bono legal service established in paragraph (b) of this
Rule is aspirational; it is a goal, not a
requirement. The number used
is intended as an average yearly amount over the course of the lawyer=s career.
A lawyer in government
service who is prohibited by constitutional, statutory, or regulatory
restrictions from performing the pro bono legal services described in
paragraph (b)(1) of the Rule may discharge the lawyer=s responsibility
by participating in activities described in paragraph (b)(2).
Code Comparison.-B There
is no counterpart of Rule 6.1 in the Disciplinary Rules of the Code. EC 2‑25 states that "The basic responsibility
for providing legal services for those unable to pay ultimately rests
upon the individual lawyer ... . Every lawyer, regardless of professional prominence
or professional workload, should find time to participate in serving
the disadvantaged." EC 8‑9 states that "The advancement
of our legal system is of vital importance in maintaining the rule of
law ... and lawyers should encourage, and should aid in making needed
changes and improvements." EC
8‑3 states that "Those persons unable to pay for legal services
should be provided needed services."
MARYLAND RULES OF PROCEDURE
TITLE 16 - COURTS, JUDGES, AND ATTORNEYS
CHAPTER 900 - PRO BONO LEGAL SERVICE
Rule
16-901. STATE PRO BONO COMMITTEE AND PLAN
Click
on your choice to read any of the Rules listed above.
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