Volume XIV, Issue I
January/February 2000

Reciprocity

by Bob Welden

Thinking of living somewhere other than Washington? Have a client with business in another state? Don't want to have to take another bar exam? This may be for you.

It is now possible for Washington lawyers to become admitted to practice in some other jurisdictions without being required to take the full bar exam. These jurisdictions include Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.¹

This possibility of "reciprocal admission" or "admission on motion" is the result of the Supreme Court adoption of Admission to Practice Rule 18. The rule provides that lawyers from other states or territories or the District of Columbia may be admitted in Washington on the same conditions that a Washington lawyer may be admitted in the other jurisdiction. Because of this rule, Washington lawyers may now qualify for admission without taking the bar exam in those states requiring reciprocity.

Depending on the admitting jurisdiction, a Washington lawyer may have to meet other admission requirements. All jurisdictions require that an applicant be of good moral character and fit to practice law. In addition, a lawyer applicant may have to meet one or more of the following requirements:

Graduation from an ABA approved law school
Admission to practice by written examination
Pass the Multistate Professional Responsibility Examination (MPRE)2
Engage in the active practice of law for a specified period previous to applying for admission (such as 3 of 5 or 5 of 10 years preceding application)
Intention to practice law within the admitting state
Completion of certain CLE requirements during a specific period before or after admission

The adoption of this rule in Washington took many years. Former King County Young Lawyers President Lish Whitson, who was also on the executive committee of the ABA Young Lawyers Division, proposed a similar rule in 1982. It was referred to a Task Force on Professional Qualifications. The Board of Governors considered the proposal in 1984. Although it had its champions on the Board, including Governor (now U. S. District Court Judge) Bill Dwyer, the proposal was not adopted.

In 1995, Whitson ran for and was elected to the Board of Governors. He once again proposed adoption of a reciprocity rule. The Board established a committee to study the issue. The committee was chaired by former WYLD President and former Governor Mike Larson, and included the chairperson of the Committee of Law Examiners, a WYLD Trustee, and a nonlawyer citizen member. They concluded that there was compelling rationale for the proposed concept and in July 1997 the Board of Governors unanimously approved the concept of reciprocal admission and directed the Committee to draft an appropriate rule. In September, the Board unanimously approved Proposed Admission to Practice Rule 17, and it was approved by the Supreme Court this year.

The current rule received wide support from all facets of the bar, and especially the corporate bar. The WYLD played an important role in establishment of this rule which eases admission to practice for Washington and other lawyers who are relocating and those with multistate practices.

You can get comprehensive information on other jurisdictions' admissions requirements from the American Bar Association and National Conference of Bar Examiners at http://www.abanet.org/. That website also contains a directory of state bar admission administrators. You can also reach the National Conference of Bar Examiners at (312) 641-0963. For information on admission to the Washington bar, see the WSBA website at www.wsba.org/, email to questions@wsba.org, or telephone (206) 727-8209.

Bob Welden is Counsel to the Washington State Bar Association.

¹ Based upon current information. For specific information, contact the admissions authority in each jurisdiction.

²Because Washington does not administer or recognize the MPRE, lawyer applicants to Washington from jurisdictions that have this requirement must pass the Washington Professional Responsibility portion of the bar examination.