Los Angeles County Bar Association Comments: 
State Bar Task Force on Access Through Innovation of Legal Services

The State Bar is seeking public comment on the changes to the fee sharing rule -- Proposed Amended Rule 5.4 [Financial and Similar Arrangements with Nonlawyers].  

The deadline for submitting public comments online through the State Bar’s website is August 28, 2020.  You will recall that last Fall the State Bar’s Access Through Innovation of Legal Services (ATILS) Taskforce made sweeping recommendations about non-attorney ownership of law firms and wholesale fee sharing with non-attorneys with informed consent of the client.  This scaled back proposal is due in large part to the concerted response of almost every voluntary bar association in California, including LACBA.

The proposed change recommended to Rule 5.4 will allow non-profits (qualified under 501(c)(3)) to share fees with attorneys they refer cases to, which will directly impact the access to justice.  It will allow the nonprofits to provide more services to more needy people.

Here is the information for the public comment information:

The State Bar seeks public comment on proposed amended Rule of Professional Conduct 5.4 [Financial and Similar Arrangements with Nonlawyers] revised by the State Bar’s Standing Committee on Professional Responsibility and Conduct, circulating for a 45-day public comment period. The Committee on Professional Responsibility will review the public comments for these rules and make a recommendation to the Board of Trustees. Please refer to the public comment notice on the State Bar website for background information on these rules and instructions for how to submit a comment.