Bar Development Presentation 1

7/30/2019 Bar Development Presentation 1

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BAR ASSOCIATION DEVELOPMENT

IN THE UNITED STATES

Nick Hentoff - Long Term Legal Specialist

American Bar Association - Rule of Law Initiative


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PRACTICING LAW IN THE UNITED STATES

According to the American Bar Association there are1,143,358 active and inactive lawyers in the UnitedStates.

General requirements for practicing law in the United

States: 4 year undergraduate degree.

Must take the Law School Aptitude Test (LSAT).

Must graduate from an ABA accredited law school (3 years).

Must pass a bar exam and character and fitness investigation.

Permission to work as a lawyer (being admitted to thebar) is not necessarily the same as membership in anindividual state's bar association.


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THERE ARE TWO KINDS OF BAR ASSOCIATIONS:

Mandatory Bar Associations:

States where membership in the state's bar

association is required to practice law.

Voluntary or Private Bar Associations:

A private organization of lawyers that usually.

engages in social, educational, and lobbying

functions, but does not normalize the practice oflaw or admit lawyers to practice before the States

courts.


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MANDATORY BAR ASSOCIATIONS

VOLUNTARY BAR ASSOCIATIONS


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Bar Association Role in

Admission to Practice Law

State Courts:

Graduate from ABA Accredited Law School

Pass Bar Examination.

Character and Fitness Examination.

General Certification. Renewals

Continuing Education Requirements

Trust Account Requirements

Pro BonoRequirements

Random Audits

Specialization Certification.

Reciprocal Admission.

Pro Hac ViceAdmission.


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Bar Association Role in Admission to Practice Law in:

General Admission: State bar membership requirements

Pro Hac Vice Admission: Requires admission in anotherFederal Court


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Admission to Practice Law

Specialized Courts:

United States Tax Court

Patent Practice

Military Law

Administrative Law Courts


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Discipline of Lawyers

Rules of Professional Responsibility

Initiation of Complaints.

Filing of Charges.

Hearings: Common Law Precedents.

Disciplinary Commission Review.

Supreme Court Review.


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VOLUNTARY BAR ASSOCIATIONS

Every State without a mandatory bar association has a

private state-wide voluntary bar association.

In states without a mandatory bar association theregulation of lawyers -- including admission to practice anddiscipline -- is typically delegated by court order or statelaw to one or more administrative office of the state

courts. There are also many national voluntary bar associations.

The American Bar Association is the largest voluntary barassociation with over 400,000 members.

Each voluntary bar association chooses its own purposes

(e.g. social, educational, or lobbying).

There are also hundreds of voluntary bar associationsorganized by city, county, or by other community, such as

Practice areas, ethnicity, ideology, religion or gender:


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GEOGRAPHY


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PRACTICE AREAS


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ETHNICITY


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IDEOLOGY


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RELIGION


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GENDER


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WOMENS BAR ASSOCIATIONS IN THE UNITED STATES

1908: First Womens Bar Association founded in New York City.

1917: District of Columbia Womens Bar Association was founded.

DCWBA lobbied for passage of the 19th Amendment to the UnitedStates Constitution giving women the right to vote in 1920 .

DCWBA continued to lobby for equal access to justice for womenincluding the repeal of a law in 1922 which stripped women of theirU.S. Citizenship if they married foreign citizens.

1950: 1,200 women enrolled in law school out of a total populationof nearly 50,000 law students (5%).

2007: 66,050 women enrolled in law schools out of a totalpopulation of over 140,000 law students (almost 50%).


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DEVELOPMENT OF AZERBAIJANS

WOMENS BAR ASSOCIATION (WBA)

November 2006: a working group of twentyfemale Azeri attorneys was formed after the

first USAID-funded International Conference

on Women Lawyers was held in Baku. March 2007: establishment of Azerbaijans

first Womens Bar Association was completed

by the filing of a charter with the Ministry ofJustice.


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AZERBAIJANS WBA: A SUCCESS STORY

By June 2007, WBA membership had expanded to 85 attorneys.

By the end of 2008, WBA membership expanded to 250 attorneys.

The WBA is holding a general assembly next month for members tovote on bylaws and board officers, and the formation of newcommittees.

The WBA recently received a $96,000 grant from USAID anda$250,000 grant from One Woman's Initiative, an NGO based inthe United States.


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ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct on

Importance of Bar Association

Independence

An independent legal professionis an important force in preservinggovernment under law, for abuseof legal authority is more readilychallenged by a profession whose

members are not dependent ongovernment for the right topractice.

Bar Development Presentation 1

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