BBE asking for changes to conditional bar admission rule

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The Wisconsin Board of Bar Examiners is asking the Wisconsin Supreme Court to consider making some changes to the rules involving conditional bar admission.

The BBE is an 11-member board appointed by the high court to admit lawyers to practice in Wisconsin and ensure lawyers fulfill their continuing-education requirements.

The board recently filed a petition to modify the rules involving conditional admissions, which are usually granted when the high court reinstates an attorney’s license after a suspension. To be conditionally admitted, lawyers usually must agree to certain conditions such as drug-test monitoring or supervision by another member of the bar.

The board is asking for a change in the rule that lays out the procedures it would follow if it chose to revoke a conditional agreement. Current rules, the board noted in its petition memo, do not reflect current practice. The proposed change would let the high court consider the matter in the light of filed documents or appoint a referee.

The board is also asking the court to create procedures that would let lawyers who lose their conditional admission seek reinstatement. The changes would also require the notification of judges and the Wisconsin State Bar when a conditionally admitted lawyer is suspended or an agreement is revoked.

The justices have not yet scheduled a hearing on the board’s proposal.