JANUARY 2021

OARC Update

A bimonthly newsletter of the
Office of Attorney Regulation Counsel

CALLS TO ACTION FOR TWO MINUTES OR LESS

Demographic Survey

Thank you to all those who have completed the online demographic survey!

Again this year, with the attorney registration statement, we included a link to an online demographic survey hosted by Survey Monkey. If you have not completed this voluntary and anonymous survey, please do so in the coming weeks as the survey will close at the end of the attorney registration cycle.  The deadline for registration without a late fee is February 28. Higher participation will allow us to better understand and monitor shifts in the demographics of the Colorado bar.

To complete the survey, go to: 
http://www.coloradosupremecourt.com/demographicsurvey.htm.
This short survey takes only 1-2 minutes to complete.
 


Attorneys on the Move

Do you know an attorney  who has changed jobs in the past year? Attorneys who move or switch firms sometimes forget to update their contact information with the Office of Attorney Registration. That can lead to noncompliance with registration and CLE deadlines.  Be sure to remind your colleagues to update their information with us!  The annual attorney registration deadline is February 28, 2021.  The deadline for submitting CLE credits earned in a compliance period ending December 31, 2020, is January 31, 2021. 

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

In this month’s What You Need to Know, we profile proposed rule and regulation amendments, and two recent ethics opinions.

 
Proposed rule changes
 
Continuing Legal and Judicial Education Rules and Regulations

The Colorado Supreme Court has proposed amendments to the rules and regulations governing continuing legal and judicial education in Colorado. The Colorado Supreme Court will conduct a hearing on the proposed rules and regulations on Tuesday, April 6, 2021 at 3:30 p.m. via WebEx.  Written comments on the proposed changes should be sent to Cheryl Stevens, Clerk of the Colorado Supreme Court, at 2 E. 14th Avenue, Denver, Colorado 80203 or emailed to cheryl.stevens@judicial.state.co.us.  Persons wishing to speak at the hearing should notify Ms. Stevens by email cheryl.stevens@judicial.state.co.us or by telephone 720-625-5150.  All comments and speaking requests must be received no later than Monday, March 29, 2021 at 4 p.m. For more information regarding the proposed amendments, click here .

In summary, those amendments to the CLE rules and regulations include, in part, the following:

  • Colorado attorneys will still be required to complete 45 credit hours of CLE in each three-year compliance period. The new amendment will require that at least seven credit hours be devoted to a broader category of professional responsibility, rather than the more narrow category of legal ethics.
  • The broader category of professional responsibility would include legal ethics, legal professionalism, and equity, diversity and inclusivity (“EDI”).
  • Starting with CLE compliance periods that end December 31, 2023, Colorado attorneys would need to complete at least two credit hours in EDI and at least five credit hours in legal ethics or legal professionalism.
  • The regulations will define what content is needed for programs to be accredited in legal ethics, legal professionalism, and EDI.
  • The regulations also expand the definition of law practice management programming to include technology and leadership relating to the practice of law.

Attorney regulation and unauthorized practice of law
The Colorado Supreme Court has proposed amendments to procedural rules governing the attorney regulation process and the unauthorized practice of law. The Colorado Supreme Court will conduct a hearing on the proposed rules on Wednesday, February 10, 2021 at 3:30 p.m. via WebEx.  Persons wishing to participate in the hearing should notify Ms. Stevens by email cheryl.stevens@judicial.state.co.us or by telephone 720-625-5150, no later than Monday, February 1, 2021 at 4 p.m.
 
The comment period closed on September 15, 2020. For more information regarding the written comments and the proposed amendments, click here.
         
Admissions
The Colorado Supreme Court has proposed amendments to rules governing the admission process in Colorado. The Colorado Supreme Court will conduct a hearing on the proposed rules on Wednesday, April 7, 2021 at 3:30 p.m. via WebEx.  Persons wishing to participate in the hearing should notify Ms. Stevens by email cheryl.stevens@judicial.state.co.us or by telephone 720-625-5150, no later than Wednesday, March 31, 2021 at 4 p.m. The public comment submission period is closed.  The proposed rule changes were summarized in OARC’s November newsletter, which can be found here .
 
Recent changes to CLE forms and fees
The OARC CLE Office is updating a number of its online forms, so be sure to check its website for the most up-to-date forms.  Also, the fee for filing a Form 1B Request for Individual Attorney Accreditation, which is required to obtain Colorado CLE credit for out-of-state live CLE courses for which the provider has not sought Colorado accreditation, has been increased from $5.00 to $10.00. The fee increase accounts for the transaction costs associated with processing such forms, as well as the vendor fees associated with the newly available online filing and payment system for these forms. The Office of Attorney Regulation Counsel operates through collected fees rather than legislative appropriations. For more information, click here.
 
ABA Ethics Opinion 495
In December 2020, the ABA Standing Committee on Ethics and Professional Responsibility issued Opinion 495 Lawyers Working Remotely. The Opinion examines the issue of a lawyer licensed in one jurisdiction and practicing that jurisdiction’s law from another jurisdiction, where the lawyer is physically located. The Opinion concludes that absent a local jurisdiction’s finding that the lawyer’s activity constitutes the unauthorized practice of law, a lawyer may practice the law authorized by the lawyer’s licensing jurisdiction for a client of that jurisdiction, while physically located in a jurisdiction where the lawyer is not licensed. The lawyer may not “hold out the lawyer’s presence or availability to perform legal services in the local jurisdiction or actually provide legal services for matters subject to the local jurisdiction, unless otherwise authorized.” ABA Formal Opinion 495. This topic was also addressed in OARC’s November newsletter.
 
ABA Ethics Opinion 496
In January 2021, the ABA Standing Committee on Ethics and Professional Responsibility issued Opinion 496 Responding to Online Criticism. The Opinion analyzes a lawyer’s obligations regarding confidentiality and responding to online reviews pursuant to Model Rule 1.6. ABA Formal Opinion 496. The Opinion also discusses CBA Ethics Committee Opinion 136.

TECH MATTERS

Attorneys who rely on Google products for creating, saving or storing documents and files in their legal practice, should note that Google is implementing new storage policies effective June 1, 2021. These changes will affect Gmail, Google Drive (including Docs, Sheets, etc.), and Google Photos, among other tools.  Given attorneys’ many ethical responsibilities concerning document and file storage, attorneys that have used Google products in the past or currently use Google products may need to change their file and document management practices.

Google summarized the new policies as follows:
  • For customers who are inactive for 2 years (24 months) in Gmail, Drive or Photos, Google may delete the content in the product(s) in which they are inactive. Google One members who are within their storage quota and in good-standing will not be impacted by this new inactive policy.
  • If customers exceed their storage limit for 2 years, Google may delete content across Gmail, Drive and Photos.
Google customers can find more information here.
 
These changes are an excellent reminder for attorneys to review their obligations under Colo. RPC 1.15D (regarding required financial records) and Colo. RPC 1.16A (regarding client file retention) to ensure that they are maintaining the required records and files in compliance with the Rules.

COLORADO BAR EXAM GOES REMOTE FOR FEBRUARY

The February 2021 Colorado Bar Exam will be held on February 23 and 24, 2021 and will be administered remotely. For more information regarding the exam, click here.

REMINDERS & UPCOMING CLEs

JANUARY
 
Jan. 26 Inner Atticus Finch Presentation, CJI CLE Presentation Virtual Visit El Paso County Bar Association (Jessica Yates)
 
Jan. 31 This is the last day to report CLE credits without penalty for the three-year compliance period ending December 31, 2020.
 
FEBRUARY
 
Feb. 1 Application filing period opens for July 2021 bar exam

Feb. 5 Trust Account School, OARC webinar
 
Feb. 25 Practicing with Professionalism, CBA-CLE webinar
 
MARCH
 
March 5 Spring Term Day, CBA Presentation Larimer County Bar Association webinar (Jessica Yates)
 
March 10 Ethical Rules Governing UPL, American Immigration Lawyers Association webinar (E. James Wilder)
 
March 15 Practicing with Professionalism, CBA-CLE webinar
 
March 19 Ethics in Virtual Practice and Other Regulatory Updates, 2021 Spring Workers Compensation Update webinar (Jacob Vos)
 
Copyright © 2021 Office of Attorney Regulation Counsel, Colorado Supreme Court, All rights reserved.

Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.
Website