Bill: Draft BAR Act

[Talion77]

A
BILL
TO

Re-establish a Self-Governing Bar Association in Redmont to Regulate the Legal Field​

The people of the Commonwealth of Redmont, through their elected Representatives in the Congress and the force of law ordained to that Congress by the people through the Constitution, do hereby enact the following provisions into law:

1 - Short Title and Enactment
(1) This Act may be cited as the “BAR Act”.
(2) This Act shall be enacted upon the consent of both Chambers of Congress and the Signature of the President of the Commonwealth of Redmont.
(3) This Act has been authored by Smallfries4 with assistance from Kaiserin_, Matthew100x, Gribble19, and Juniperfig.
(4) This Act has been sponsored by Representative Talion77.
(5) This Act has been co-sponsored by Senator Gribble19.

2 - Reasons
(1) The legal field of Redmont has been notoriously unstable and plagued with unethical, untrustworthy, and ultimately unacceptable conduct.
(2) The legal field requires fertile soil for the seeds of knowledge to grow, and it further requires a stable body that can protect and uphold the virtues and ethics of the nation.
(3) In order to protect the prosperity of the Nation and preserve the rights of the People, it is necessary to create a regulatory body enforced and endorsed by law that shall uphold moral, ethical, and legal values upon the practicing attorneys of Redmont.
(4) The destruction of previous attempts to regulate the legal field was misguided and mishandled, wrought by self-serving individuals whose influence must be stamped out once and for all.
(5) Though very real concerns exist, it is within the interest of Congress and the People for the legal field to have a centralized and representative regulatory body to ensure ethical, moral, and legal compliance outside the direct oversight of the Government, due to the highly complex and ever-changing nature of the legal field.
(6) The legal field must be tight-knit and interconnected, imbued with a deep sense of community and trust, and the members thereof must feel they are represented and have a say in the development of a field.
(7) The price good men pay for indifference is to be ruled by evil men. Following this, the legal field must be able to regulate itself and ensure that its leaders are ethical and morally upstanding.
(8) To amend the Criminal Code Act and the Modern Legal Reform Act in line with the provisions of this bill.

3 - Creation of the Bar Association of Redmont
(1) An independent organization endorsed and imbued with regulatory power by this Congress shall be established and legally empowered under the provisions of this law.
The BAR shall be apportioned funding from the Government Balance each month by Congress.
(2) This organization shall be known as the Bar Association of Redmont, or BAR, and shall be the exclusive body regulating the legal field in Redmont.
(3) This organization shall encompass all individuals that are licensed to represent other individuals before the Courts of Redmont, and those who act as Judicial Officers of those Courts.
(4) The BAR shall be charged with creating and maintaining public rules and guidelines on legal ethics, morality, and professionalism.
(5) Only those individuals in good standing with the BAR may be allowed to practice as a Solicitor, Barrister, or Attorney within the Courts of Redmont.
(a) Any person that practices or represents as the above without being in good standing with the BAR shall be indicted for Legal Qualification Fraud as prescribed in §5.III.11 of the Criminal Code Act.
(b) All newly admitted BAR members shall be considered in good standing. The Council of the BAR can decide otherwise according to their established rules and guidelines on ethics, morality, and professionalism.
(c) The BAR may investigate BAR members. The BAR has the power to censure, disbar, and otherwise discipline those individuals within the legal field that do not meet the ethical, moral, or legal standards of the BAR.
(6) Upon passing any of the legal exams defined in the Modern Legal Reform Act or subsequent law, that person shall automatically become a member of the BAR.
Membership is automatic and cannot be voluntarily revoked.
This shall not be the case for individuals that are currently disbarred or are otherwise facing disciplinary measures from the BAR.

4 - Structure of the Bar Association of Redmont
(1) A Council of five individuals shall sit as the leading body of the BAR. Each of these five individuals shall be equal in standing when assembled for matters of business. Of these five:
(a) The first is to be appointed by the President of Redmont, subject to approval by the Senate of Redmont.
(b) The second is to be elected by popular vote within the BAR, where all members in good standing shall cast one ballot for a candidate that is a member in good standing with the BAR.
(i) The time and method of elections shall be decided upon by the Council of the BAR after it is filled for the first time.
(ii) For the purposes of the first election, voting will be held over a forty-eight hour window. This will begin no sooner than three days after the first Councilor is confirmed, and no later than one week. That councilor will oversee this first election, and the winner shall be decided by a majority vote. In the case of no candidate securing a majority of votes, the two candidates with the highest number of votes shall face one another in a run-off election, held no later than three days after the conclusion of the first vote.
(c) The remaining three members of the Council shall be elected in concert by the first two members. Both members must agree on a choice for that candidate to become a Councilor.
(d) Should the Council not be filled two weeks after the confirmation of the first Councilor and election of the second, the Council will be disbanded and must be renewed as prescribed above, though the first two Councilors from that disbanded Council shall not be eligible candidates in this new Council.
(e) A Councilor may not be removed unless:
(i) By unanimous agreement of the rest of the Council;
(ii) and a supermajority vote by the active membership of the BAR as a whole.
(2) The powers of the Council shall be as follows:
(a) The Council shall have all decision making power within the BAR, outside of that explicitly left to the Government or the membership body.
(b) Each Council shall have a term of two calendar months. This term shall begin when the first Councilor of a Council takes their seat, and does not expire if that Councilor vacates their position.
(c) All decisions by the Council, including revoking of previous Council decisions, disbarment, and others, shall succeed upon a simple majority in agreement of all sitting Councilors.
(d) All remaining terms, rules, and structure of organization shall be decided by the Council. The BAR is empowered to regulate itself and the legal field.

5 - Status of the Modern Legal Reform Act


(1) The Modern Legal Reform Act shall be amended as follows:

“4 - Legal Ranks and Practice Rights

(1) The legal profession shall be organized into three ranks:
(a) Solicitor
(b) Barrister
(c) Attorney

(2) The Solicitor rank shall:
(a) Be the entry-level legal qualification
(b) Grant the holder the right privilege to practice law in District Courts
(c) Permit the holder to:
(i) Represent clients in any kind of District Court proceedings.
(ii) File any kind of cases on behalf of clients in District Court.
(iii) Provide legal advice within District Court jurisdiction.
(iv) Officiate marriage and divorce proceedings.

(3) The Barrister rank shall:
(a) Be awarded upon passing any one specialization examination, where a barrister may collect as many specializations as they are qualified for to gain the perks of said specialization.
(b) Include all powers and rights granted to Solicitors.
(c) Grant additional rights privileges to practice in Federal Courts within their specialization(s).
(d) Permit the holder to:
(i) Represent clients in Federal Court proceedings within their specialization(s).
(ii) File cases in Federal Court within their specialization(s).
(iii) Provide legal advice for matters within Federal Court jurisdiction.

(4) The Attorney rank shall:
(a) Include all powers and rights granted to Solicitors and Barristers.
(b) Require completion of all current specialization exams.
(i) Lawyers who achieve the Attorney rank will not have to take any novel specialization exam if a new test is added after they attain the Attorney rank.
(c) Grant the right privilege to practice in all courts without any restrictions or exceptions, including the Supreme Court, unless so ordered by the BAR.
(d) Permit the holder to:
(i) Represent clients in any court of the Commonwealth
(ii) File cases in any court of the Commonwealth
(iii) Provide legal advice for all matters within the Commonwealth's jurisdiction

5 - Department of Education Powers

(1) The Department of Education shall have the authority to:
(a) Develop, maintain, and update all legal examinations
(b) Establish examination procedures and requirements
(c) Set reasonable passing criteria for each rank
(d) Implement changes to the examination system with at least seven [7] days notice
(e) Create or remove specializations, which are legal exams focusing on a particular topic, within the Barrister rank with at least seven [7] days notice

(2) The Department of Education must:
(a) Consult with the Council of the BAR before implementing changes to the legal exams.
(b) Provide public notice of any changes to examination requirements
(c) Ensure examination standards remain consistent with legal practice needs.
(d) Maintain records of all qualified legal practitioners

6 - Examination Administration

(1) All legal examinations shall be conducted through the Minecraft Exam-sign system, unless otherwise specified or directed by the Department of Education.

(2) The Department of Education shall:
(a) Ensure examination security
(b) Maintain examination records
(c) Issue appropriate rank designations upon successful completion
(d) Provide reasonable accommodations for technical issues

7 - Supervised Practice and Government Legal Work

(1) Supervised Private Practice
(a) A licensed legal practitioner of any rank may practice in any court when:
(i) They are employed by or contracted to a law firm;
(ii) They are under the direct supervision of an Attorney-ranked practitioner; and
(iii) The supervising Attorney assumes responsibility for their work.
(b) A licensed legal practitioner of any rank may give legal advice without restriction, and is immune from Legal Fraud or Legal Malpractice when:
(i) They are employed by or contracted to a law firm;
(ii) They are under the direct supervision of an Attorney-ranked practitioner; and
(iii) The supervising Attorney assumes responsibility for their work.
(c) The supervising Attorney must:
(i) Review and approve all court filings
(ii) Be present for in-game court appearances and oversee forums posts
(iii) Maintain ultimate responsibility for the case
(iv) Be a member in good standing with the BAR.

(2) Government Legal Practice
(a) Licensed legal practitioners employed by the Department of Justice may practice in any court when they are:
(i) Acting in their official capacity;
(ii) Appointed to the case; and
(iii) Supervised by a Department superior who possesses the Attorney rank, and is a member in good standing with the BAR.
(b) Licensed legal practitioners serving as Public Defenders may practice in any court when they are:
(i) Acting in their official capacity;
(ii) Appointed to the case; and
(iii) Overseen by a Department superior who possesses the Attorney rank.”

7 - Criminal Code Act


(1) The Criminal Code Act shall be amended as follows:

“11 - Legal Qualification Fraud
Offence Type: Indictable
Penalty: Up to 300 Penalty Units; Up to 4 months disbarment.
A person commits an offence if the person:
(a) intentionally misrepresents their legal credentials, qualifications, or rank, or engages in the practice of law without a valid legal qualification, or without being in good standing with the BAR.
Relevant Law: Act of Congress - Modern Legal Reform Act”