Utah Sup. Ct. R. Prof'l. Prac. 14-802
Utah. Sup. Ct. R. Prof'l. Prac. 14-802
Advisory Committee Notes:
Paragraph (a).
"Active" in this paragraph refers to the formal status of a lawyer, as determined by the Bar. Among other things, an active lawyer must comply with the Bar's requirements for continuing legal education.
Paragraph (b).
The practice of law defined in paragraph (b)(1) includes: giving advice or counsel to another person as to that person's legal rights or responsibilities with respect to that person's facts and circumstances; selecting, drafting, or completing legal documents that affect the legal rights or responsibilities of another person; representing another person before an adjudicative, legislative, or executive body, including preparing or filing documents and conducting discovery; and negotiating legal rights or responsibilities on behalf of another person.
Because representing oneself does not involve another person, it is not technically the "practice of law." Thus, any natural person may represent oneself as an individual in any legal context. To the same effect is Article 1, Rule 14-111 Integration and Management: "Nothing in this article shall prohibit a person who is unlicensed as an attorney at law or a foreign legal consultant from personally representing that person's own interests in a cause to which the person is a party in his or her own right and not as assignee."
Similarly, an employee of a business entity is not engaged in "the representation of the interest of another person" when activities involving the law are a part of the employee's duties solely in connection with the internal business operations of the entity and do not involve providing legal advice to another person. Further, a person acting in an official capacity as an employee of a government agency that has administrative authority to determine the rights of persons under the law is also not representing the interests of another person.
As defined in paragraph (b)(2), "the law" is a comprehensive term that includes not only the black-letter law set forth in constitutions, treaties, statutes, ordinances, administrative and court rules and regulations, and similar enactments of governmental authorities, but the entire fabric of its development, enforcement, application, and interpretation.
Laws duly enacted by the electorate by initiative and referendum under constitutional authority are included under paragraph (b)(2)(A).
Paragraph (b)(2)(B) is intended to incorporate the breadth of decisional law, as well as the background, such as committee hearings, floor discussions, and other legislative history, that often accompanies the written law of legislatures and other law- and rulemaking bodies. Reference to adjudicative bodies in this paragraph includes courts and similar tribunals, arbitrators, administrative agencies, and other bodies that render judgments or opinions involving a person's interests.
Paragraph (c).
The exceptions for Licensed Paralegal Practitioners arise from the November 18, 2015 Report and Recommendation of the Utah Supreme Court Task Force to Examine Limited Legal Licensing. The Task Force was created to make recommendations to address the large number of litigants who are unrepresented or forgo access to the Utah judicial system because of the high cost of retaining a lawyer. The Task Force recommended that the Utah Supreme Court exercise its constitutional authority to govern the practice of law to create a subset of discreet legal services in the practice areas of: (1) temporary separation, divorce, parentage, cohabitant abuse, civil stalking, and custody and support; (2) unlawful detainer and forcible entry and detainer; and (3) debt collection matters in which the dollar amount in issue does not exceed the statutory limit for small claims cases. The Task Force determined that these three practice areas have the highest number of unrepresented litigants in need of low-cost legal assistance. Based on the Task Force's recommendations, the Utah Supreme Court authorized Licensed Paralegal Practitioners to provide limited legal services as prescribed in this rule and in accordance with the Supreme Court Rules of Professional Practice. In the future, the Court may add additional practice areas for Licensed Paralegal Practitioners to assist otherwise unrepresented persons in obtaining legal representation.
Paragraph (c)(1).
A Licensed Paralegal Practitioner may complete forms that are approved by the Judicial Council and that are related to the limited scope of practice of law described in paragraph (c). The Judicial Council approves forms for the Online Consumer Assistance Program and for use by the public. The forms approved by the Judicial Council may be found at https://www.utcourts.gov/ocap/ and https://www.utcourts.gov/selfhelp/.
A Licensed Paralegal Practitioner may also prepare documents that are consistent with the relevant portions of the Judicial Council approved forms but that eliminate any unnecessary information or tailor the information to a client's specific needs. Such documents may be filed with the court by a Licensed Paralegal Practitioner in the same manner as forms approved by the Judicial Council. This paragraph is not intended to expand the scope of Licensed Paralegal Practitioners' limited scope of practice.
Paragraph (d).
To the extent not already addressed by the requirement that the practice of law involves the representation of others, paragraph (d)(2) permits the direct and indirect dissemination of legal information in an educational context, such as legal teaching and lectures.
Paragraph (d)(3) permits assistance provided by employees of the courts and legal-aid and similar organizations that do not charge for providing these services.
Paragraph (d)(7) applies only to the procedures directly related to parties' involvement before a neutral third-party mediator; it does not extend to any related judicial proceedings unless otherwise provided for under this rule (e.g., under paragraph (d)(5)).