CORE ISSUE

ISSUE:  ATTORNEY ADMISSION/RENEWAL FEES
               (PROFESSIONAL PRIVILEGE FEES)

SUMMARY: Maryland's fiscal crisis in the early 1990's prompted some lawmakers to propose new revenue-generating ideas as a means of chipping away at budget shortfalls. One of these proposals that received attention in 1992 was a bill, and later a budget amendment, to establish an admission and biennial renewal fee for all Maryland lawyers.

Under the provisions of Senate Bill 544, all those newly admitted to the Bar would be required to pay $100, and all current lawyers would have to pay $250 every two years in order to practice law in Maryland. The legislation did not stipulate what additional services would be provided in return for the additional fees.

Maryland lawyers already pay substantial amounts to provide for regulation and maintenance of professional standards. Applicants to the bar exam must pay fees of $215 to take the test. Once admitted, each attorney must pay $85 per year (Attorney Grievance Commission - $65/Clients' Security Trust Fund of the Bar of Maryland - $20) to support the disciplinary and public protection infrastructure of the state's legal profession. The Maryland State Bar Association, Inc. (MSBA), although a voluntary bar, provides many of the services supplied by government agencies and unified bars in other states. MSBA annual dues are $125 per year. In addition, the Maryland Institute for Continuing Professional Education of Lawyers (MICPEL), a fee and sales supported nonprofit organization, serves another function that is a government program in other jurisdictions.

There have been no bills to impose a professional privilege fee on lawyers since 1992, but an unsuccessful attempt to charge a flat $100 per lawyer fee increase to pay for legal services to indigent defendants was made in 1998.  In 1999, a bill that would have required all Maryland attorneys to purchase fidelity bonds to cover losses caused by defalcations was defeated in Committee.  A bill filed in the 2000 session would have used a portion of the fees paid to the Clients' Security Trust Fund to assist lawyers who serve low income clients in paying off their student loans.  This legislation also failed.

MSBA 2002 POSITION: Oppose any additional attorney admission or renewal fees. Arguments in opposition to new fee proposals should emphasize that additional professional service fees, if enacted, must include all professions, not just the legal profession, and that consideration must be given to the impact of such a fee on efforts to encourage attorneys to devote more time to pro bono activities.

SAMPLE LEGISLATION:
Senate Bill 544, pp 1 & 2, General Assembly of Maryland, 1992
House Bill 16, General Assembly of Maryland, 1999

Return to 2002 Final State Legislative Program Table of Contents

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