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Advocates urge easing rules to let law students and out-of-state attorneys expand indigent representation
Summary
Legal-aid advocates, court administrators and law students told the Michigan Supreme Court that folding out-of-state barred attorneys into MCR 8.12(o) and extending supervised practice periods would increase capacity for indigent defense and civil legal aid without removing supervision or safeguards.
Jacqueline McCann of the State Appellate Defender Office said supervised practice under the court rule ‘‘is working really well for us for interns and law students,’’ but she urged simplifying the Pro Hac Vice-like process for attorneys already barred in other states. McCann described a supervising attorney’s recent experience where an attorney barred in New York took about 14 months to complete Michigan’s process, creating staffing challenges across counties.
Lydia Christiansen, who identified herself as an independent U.S. Senate candidate, said the amendments ‘‘multiply capacity where the need is greatest’’ and remove procedural barriers that impede meaningful representation for indigent defendants. Tara Brown, a law student, supported extending recent-graduate supervised practice from 12 to 15 months to sustain continuity while graduates await bar results or face financial hardship.
Speakers stressed that supervised practitioners would remain under licensed-attorney supervision and subject to court oversight and ethical rules. McCann asked the Court to incorporate out-of-state barred attorneys into the relevant subsection so they could practice similarly to 3Ls and recent graduates for the relevant supervised period.
No formal action was taken during the hearing; the matter remains before the Court for further consideration.
