House File 322 - Introduced HOUSE FILE 322 BY COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY (SUCCESSOR TO HSB 9) A BILL FOR An Act relating to qualifications to practice law in Iowa 1 and regulation of persons admitted to practice law in a 2 jurisdiction of the United States other than Iowa. 3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 4 TLSB 1261HV (1) 88 asf/jh

H.F. 322 Section 1. Section 602.10102, Code 2019, is amended to read 1 as follows: 2 602.10102 Qualifications for admission. 3 Every applicant for such admission shall be a person of 4 honesty, integrity, trustworthiness, truthfulness and one who 5 appreciates and will adhere to a code of conduct for lawyers 6 as adopted by the supreme court. The applicant shall be an 7 inhabitant of this state, and shall have actually and in good 8 faith pursued a regular course of study of the law and shall 9 have graduated from some reputable law school. The application 10 form shall not contain a recent photograph of the applicant. 11 An applicant shall not be ineligible for registration because 12 of age, citizenship, sex, race, religion, marital status or 13 national origin although the application form may require 14 citizenship information. The board may consider the past 15 record of guilty pleas and convictions of public offenses of an 16 applicant. Character references may be required; however, such 17 references shall not be restricted to lawyers. 18 Sec. 2. Section 602.10109, Code 2019, is amended to read as 19 follows: 20 602.10109 Practitioners from other states United States 21 jurisdictions . 22 Any person who is a resident of this state, and has been 23 admitted to the bar of any other state in the United States , or 24 the District of Columbia, or a territory of the United States, 25 may, in the discretion of the court, be admitted to practice in 26 this state without examination or proof of a period of study. 27 The person, in the application for admission to practice law 28 in this state, in addition to all other requirements stated in 29 this chapter , shall establish that the person has practiced law 30 for five full years under license in such jurisdiction within 31 the seven years immediately preceding the date of application 32 and still holds a license to practice law. The teaching of law 33 as a full-time instructor in a recognized law school in this 34 state or some other state shall for the purpose of this section 35 -1- LSB 1261HV (1) 88 asf/jh 1/ 3

H.F. 322 be deemed the practice of law. Any person who has discharged 1 actual legal duties as a member of the armed services of 2 the United States shall be deemed to have practiced law for 3 the purposes of this section if certified to as such by the 4 judge advocate general of the service. The court may charge 5 an investigation fee based upon the cost of conducting the 6 investigation as determined by the court. 7 Sec. 3. Section 602.10111, Code 2019, is amended to read as 8 follows: 9 602.10111 Nonresident Non-Iowa attorney —— appointment of 10 local Iowa attorney. 11 Any member of the bar of another state, the District of 12 Columbia, or a territory of the United States actually engaged 13 in any cause or matter pending in any court of this state, may 14 be permitted by such court to appear in and conduct such cause 15 or matter while retaining the attorney’s residence in another 16 state , without being subject to this article ; provided that at 17 the time the attorney enters an appearance the attorney files 18 with the clerk of such court the written appointment of some 19 attorney resident and admitted to practice in the state of 20 Iowa, upon whom service may be had in all matters connected 21 with said action, with the same effect as if personally made on 22 such foreign attorney within this state. In case of failure to 23 make such appointment, such attorney shall not be permitted to 24 practice as provided in this section , and all papers filed by 25 the attorney shall be stricken from the files. 26 EXPLANATION 27 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with 28 the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly. 29 This bill removes the requirement that an applicant for 30 admission to practice law (be admitted to the bar) in Iowa be 31 a resident of Iowa. The bill, in part, is a response to the 32 United States Supreme Court’s decision in Supreme Court of New 33 Hampshire v. Piper, 470 U.S. 274 (1985). That case held that a 34 state residency requirement to be admitted to the bar violated 35 -2- LSB 1261HV (1) 88 asf/jh 2/ 3

H.F. 322 the Privileges and Immunities Clause of the United States 1 Constitution. 2 The bill provides that people who are qualified to be 3 admitted to practice law in Iowa at the discretion of the 4 court include not only persons who have been admitted to the 5 bars of any other state or the District of Columbia but also a 6 territory of the United States. 7 Finally, the bill provides that an out-of-state attorney 8 admitted to the bar of the District of Columbia or a territory 9 of the United States may apply to appear pro hac vice in an Iowa 10 case and removes the requirement that the local attorney be a 11 resident of Iowa; however, it maintains the requirement that 12 the local attorney be admitted to practice law in the state of 13 Iowa. 14 -3- LSB 1261HV (1) 88 asf/jh 3/ 3