70 Practice of law by attorneys employed in the Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania; No. 454 judicial administration doc.

SUPREME COURT

Practice of Law by Attorneys Employed in the Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania; No. 454 Judicial Administration Doc.

[46 Pa.B. 351]
[Saturday, January 16, 2016]

Order

Per Curiam

 And Now, this 29th day of December, 2015, pursuant to Article V, Section 10 of the Constitution of Pennsylvania, It Is Ordered as follows.

 An attorney employed in the Unified Judicial System shall be prohibited from appearing as counsel (except in a pro se capacity) in the division/section of the court in which the attorney is employed. Further, in courts that have no formally established divisions or sections, or for an attorney who is not employed within a division or section, the attorney is prohibited (except as to pro se matters) from appearing as counsel in the court itself. See 42 Pa.C.S. § 2502(a) (''Except as otherwise prescribed by general rule, an attorney at law who is an employee of a court shall not appear as counsel in such court.''); Pa.R.A.P. 3121 (prohibiting the practice of law by appellate court staff except in limited circumstances); and In Re: Practice of Law by and Qualifications of Law Clerks Employed in the Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania, No. 438 Judicial Administration Docket (December 11, 2014) (restricting the practice of law by judicial law clerks).

 Any outside employment or commercial activities by attorneys employed in the Unified Judicial System, including the practice of law, must be permitted by, and must be approved in accordance with, the Rules of Professional Conduct, the Code of Conduct for Employees of the Unified Judicial System, and any other applicable personnel policies.

 This Order shall be processed in accordance with Pa.R.J.A. No. 103(b), and shall be effective January 1, 2017, for all current and future attorneys employed in the Unified Judicial System.

 Mr. Justice Eakin did not participate in the decision of this matter.

[Pa.B. Doc. No. 16-70. Filed for public inspection January 15, 2016, 9:00 a.m.]