Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility

High court issues changes to trust-account rules, disciplinary procedures

By: Erika Strebel, [email protected]//April 26, 2016//

High court issues changes to trust-account rules, disciplinary procedures

By: Erika Strebel, [email protected]//April 26, 2016//

Listen to this article

The Wisconsin Supreme Court has issued the final versions of rules governing the use of electronic banking for trust accounts and giving the Office of Lawyer Regulation more discretion in its investigations.

The changes will take effect July 1.

The court on April 4 issued final language for the rules changes involving electronic banking for trust accounts. The changes will allow electronic transfers of almost any kind and condense the record-keeping provisions found in the current trust-account rules, making the requirements more general.

The OLR’s guidelines will become the new home for detailed requirements concerning record keeping. Taking those requirements’ place in the rules would be two presumptions: 1) That the lawyer overseeing an account has an obligation to keep records concerning it and understands that obligation; and that, 2) if that lawyer doesn’t produce those records, there would be a rebuttable presumption that he had failed to hold funds in trust.

OLR director Keith Sellen, who petitioned the court for the changes in December 2014, has said that he predicts the changes would mean the OLR will spend less time investigating trust-account violations stemming from mistakes and more time on violations that have a greater risk of harming the public.

The justices held a public hearing on the changes in December.

Also, on April 21, the justices issued the final language for a rule change giving the OLR more discretion to decide whether to start formal investigations. Sellen had petitioned the court to make the change in December 2014, citing the justices’ concerns in recent opinions that OLR should exercise more discretion in cases concerning minor violations of the rules governing the professional conduct of lawyers.

The justices held a public hearing on the petition in September, and voted to adopt the change in December.

Polls

Should Steven Avery be granted a new evidentiary hearing?

View Results

Loading ... Loading ...

Legal News

See All Legal News

WLJ People

Sea all WLJ People

Opinion Digests