Tag Archive for: florida bar investigative hearing

What is “Disqualifying Conduct” When Applying to the Florida Bar?

The following information was obtained on the Florida Board of Bar Examiners website. The result of the conduct listed here is often the reason our firm is called on when an Investigative or Formal hearing is requested by the Board of Bar Examiners.

“Pursuant to  rule 3-11 a record manifesting a lack of honesty, trustworthiness, diligence, or reliability may constitute a basis for denial of admission. Any of the following may be considered by the board to be a basis for further inquiry before recommending admission:

  • Unlawful conduct
  • Academic misconduct
  • Making or procuring any false or misleading statement or omission of relevant information, including any false or misleading statement or omission on the Bar Application, or any amendment, or in any testimony or sworn statement submitted to the board
  • Misconduct in employment
  • Acts involving dishonesty, fraud, deceit, or misrepresentation
  • Abuse of legal process
  • Financial irresponsibility
  • Neglect of professional obligations
  • Violation of an order of a court
  • Evidence of mental or emotional instability
  • Evidence of drug or alcohol dependency
  • Denial of admission to the bar in another jurisdiction on character and fitness grounds
  • Disciplinary action by a lawyer disciplinary agency or other professional disciplinary agency of any jurisdiction
  • Any other conduct which reflects adversely upon the character and fitness of the applicant”

This ends the information obtained on the Florida Board of Bar Examiners website.

Soreide Law Group represents those seeking admittance to the Florida Bar, and existing attorneys, for both Investigative Hearings and Formal Hearings before the Florida Bar. For more information about our services please call (888) 760-6552.

Florida Bar Investigative Hearing Defense Attorney Tip of the Month June 2014

Are out of state attorneys applying to the Florida Bar subjected to a higher level of scrutiny than first time applicants? There is no quantifiable data that can answer this question, but it is my opinion that yes they are.
Having personally represented over a hundred applicants before the Board, I see out-of-state attorneys applying to the Florida Bar for the first time, being called in for investigative hearings for what would normally not spark any further inquiry for first time new lawyer applicants. The logic behind this may be that retirees, typically from up North, who move down here should retire, and the Bar has an interest in retirees not “hanging a shingle” which would cut into the livelihood of existing Florida attorneys.
Either way, whatever the logic is, if you are licensed and practicing in another state and applying to the Florida Bar, it is wise to consult a Florida Bar Hearing Investigative Hearing Defense attorney to review your application before filing, and to not represent yourself if you are called in.
Licensed attorneys tend to want to represent themselves due to the fact that they have litigation experience in their respective area of law.  In most instances, the field of expertise they are licensed in does not translate to an administrative hearing, and a consultation with an attorney who routinely practices in this area is recommended.
If you have an upcoming investigative or formal hearing with the Florida Bar, call Soreide Law Group for a consultation at no cost with a Florida Bar Hearing Defense Attorney at (888) 760-6552. Our attorneys will travel to all locations in Florida to appear before the Board of Bar Examiners.

Florida Bar Hearing Defense Lawyer’s Tip of the Month for May 2014

After just returning from Tampa, after another successful administration of the Florida Board of Bar Examiners, I returned with the thought that no crime is too old for the Board to inquire about. Time is a mitigating factor when it comes to bad acts, but it doesn’t mean the Board won’t want to learn about all the details of some youthful indiscretion even though, for example, you may have been still in high school.

The focus of the Board of Bar Examiners should be the status of your present character and Florida Bar Rule 3-12 (Determination of Present Character) (a) and (b) both consider the age and recency of the conduct at issue.

To be on the safe side, depending on the egregious nature of the past conduct (no matter how old), it may be wise to consider going above and beyond just being prepared to discuss the past crimes in detail. You may want to consider doing some meaningful community service to offer as evidence of rehabilitation.

Florida Bar rule 3-13 (g) considers all community or civic service. Florida Bar rule 3-13 (g) goes on to further state that, “the requirement of positive action is appropriate for applicants for admission to The Florida Bar because service to one’s community is an implied obligation of members of The Florida Bar.”

For a free consultation with a Florida Bar Hearing Defense Lawyer to help you meet your burden of proof that you possess the requisite good character to practice law in Florida, call Soreide Law Group at (954) 760-6552. We travel to all hearing locations throughout Florida of the Board of Bar Examiners.

Florida Bar Hearing Defense Attorney’s Tip of the Month for April 2014

If you have a history of drug or alcohol abuse it is important to consider the benefits of enrolling in Florida Lawyers Assistance before you appear in front of the Board of Bar Examiners for an Investigative Hearing. The Florida Bar is widely known as the toughest in the country when it comes to character and fitness evaluations. However, the Bar does not view a dependency problem as a character flaw, but rather as a treatable disease.
Many Applicants may be concerned that enrolling in Florida Lawyers Assistance of “FLA” would be evidence of bad character, while the exact opposite is true. The Board of Bar Examiners is not comprised of medical professionals who can assess the nature of any dependency disorder,  so they must rely upon FLA to do so for them. If enrolled in FLA the enrollee will have to abstain from all drugs (non prescribed) and alcohol and be subjected to random screening. This gives the Board the level of comfort they need to obtain to be able to conditionally admit you for a finite term with permanent admission to follow a successful term at FLA.
If enrolling make sure to enroll far enough out that you can have a meaningful interaction with FLA such as successfully completing several drug screens and obtaining a sponsor.  If however you feel that you do not have a dependency problem but your bar application may evidence otherwise, it is possible as an alternative to have a Florida Lawyers Assistance approved doctor conduct a chemical dependency evaluation and produce a report that may be offered at your investigative or formal hearing as evidence of no chemical dependency problem.
For more information or questions concerning this post you can contact Lars Soreide, Esq., at (954) 760-6552. Defending Florida Bar Applicants throughout Florida.

The Florida Board of Bar Examiners is Seeking Members from the General Public

The Florida Board of  Bar Examiners is currently seeking two people  from the general public to help in the process of recommendations for The Florida Bar.  This would be a three year term for the board members chosen.

The duties of the Board of Bar Examiners is to make sure all of the requirements for the applicants are met.  These requirements include such things as education, character and fitness, technical competence, to name a few. The deadline to apply is April 25, 2014.  The Florida Supreme Court has the final decision once the Board makes the recommendation.

For the general public member positions, lawyers are not eligible and you must have a bachelor’s degree, also experience or education in areas such as educational testing, statistics, psychology or medicine.  Expenses will be covered and approximately three days per month of work.

If you are interested in the position, please contact The Florida Bar.  Information is available also on their website.

Soreide Law Group represents those seeking admittance to The Florida Bar, and existing lawyers, for both Investigative Hearings and Formal Hearings in front of The Florida Bar. Please call (888) 760-6552.

Florida Bar Hearing Defense Lawyer’s Tip of the Month for March 2014

Having just returned from the recent hearings before the Florida Board of Bar Examiners in Tampa, I felt that the topic of child support obligations should be the topic of discussion for this month’s post.
Florida Rule 4-8.4(h) prohibits a lawyer from willfully refusing to timely pay a child support obligation. Florida Statute 61.13015 provides the basis for The Florida Bar to suspend a lawyer or deny a professional license for the willful non-payment of child support obligations.  Child support is an issue that I am beginning to see more often before the Board of Bar Examiners at investigative and formal hearings.
If you have delinquent payment obligations and are currently applying to the bar, try to make every effort to make all payments current. Your scorned ex-spouse will most likely also be contacted the Bar’s examiners and this will give them every opportunity to air out your dirty laundry and pour gasoline on the fire, creating all sorts of new issues you will have to defend.
Being a law student is no excuse for not paying your child support. Make arrangements to keep current at all times. If you have an investigative or formal hearing with the Florida Bar, feel free to call for a consultation at no cost to discuss your situation with a Florida Bar Hearing Defense Attorney. Call Soreide Law Group at (888) 760-6552. Our main office is in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Our attorneys travel to all locations throughout Florida to appear before the Board of Bar Examiners.

Florida Bar Hearing Defense Lawyer’s Tip of the Month for February 2014

This might seem obvious to some, but more often than not applicants to the Florida Bar do not review their Law School Applications prior to submitting the application to The Florida Bar. The Florida Board of Bar Examiners look for inconsistencies between your law school and bar applications. As a college student entering law school, one can be all too eager to assume the most favorable interpretation of a question on a law school application to not highlight some past transgression. The Florida Bar does fully expect an applicant to be completely candid in the admissions process, including BOTH applications.
So if you failed to disclose something on your law school application, please amend prior to submitting the Bar Application. It will definitely mitigate, to some extent, the lack of candor on the Law School Application if you become proactive and take it upon yourself to amend the application without the Board of Bar Examiners requesting you amend it. Candor is the most important aspect of the admissions process and applicants need to be extra careful in being consistent on all applications submitted signed under penalty of perjury.
If you have an investigative hearing and you have candor issues, feel free to call 954-760-6552 for a free consultation.

Florida Bar Investigative Hearing Schedule 2014

The bar hearing defense firm of Soreide Law Group, (888) 760-6552, is reporting the tentative upcoming bar hearing meeting calendar for the Florida Board of Bar Examiners. Fort Lauderdale was added as a meeting location this year for the first time.  Soreide Law Group, and bar hearing defense lawyer, Lars Soreide, are located in Fort Lauderdale and travel regularly to all meetings of the Board of Bar Examiners for clients who have investigative and formal hearings before the Board.
January 9-11, 2014- Orlando;
March 13-15, 2014 Tallahassee;
April 10-12, 2014 Fort Lauderdale,
May 15-17, 2014 Tampa Bay
July 10-12, 2014 Jacksonville;
Sept 18-20, 2014 Orlando;
Oct 23-25, Fort Lauderdale; and
November 20-22, 2014 Tampa Bay.

Florida Bar Hearing Attorney Tip of the Month

– December’s Tip
When appearing before the Florida Board of Bar Examiners for an investigative hearing remember that the burden is on you to prove you have the requisite good character and fitness to be admitted to the Florida Bar. This isn’t criminal court where you can say nothing and present no evidence and the State has to make their case. Be proactive and communicate with the Panel members:
1) what mistakes you’ve made,
2) what you have learned from your mistakes, and
3) what assurances you can offer the Panel that the mistakes will not be repeated.
For more tips and information visit FloridaBarHearing.com or call and speak with Lars Soreide at (888) 760-6552.
Soreide Law Group, representing Florida Bar Applicants throughout the state of Florida.

Florida Supreme Court to Hear Whether or Not Undocumented Immigrants Are Eligible for Admission to The Florida Bar

The Florida Supreme Court is now back in session and is facing several high-profile cases.  One of those cases to be decided is:

Florida Board of Bar Examiners Re: Question as to Whether Undocumented Immigrants Are Eligible for Admission to The Florida Bar.

We have already posted twice on our blog regarding this case.  To review, click on the following links:

https://www.floridabarhearing.com/barhearingblog/?p=177

https://www.floridabarhearing.com/barhearingblog/?p=225

Briefly, the case involves Jose Godinez-Samperio, who came to America at 9 years-old from Mexico and graduated from law school at Florida State University. The problem is, Godinez-Samperio is an undocumented immigrant. The Supreme Court heard arguments in October, 2012, after the Florida Board of Bar Examiners asked the justices for guidance.

Godinez-Samperio also was approved to stay and work in the country under the 2012 Obama administration policy — “deferred action” — which was developed to help young people.

Last year the justices questioned whether the federal law prohibits undocumented immigrants from getting law licenses. In May, the U.S. Department of Justice said federal law bars the Florida Supreme Court from issuing a law license to an “unlawfully present alien,” regardless of the deferred-action issue. This dealt a major blow to Godinez-Samperio’s case.

Attorney Lars K. Soreide,  Soreide Law Group, represents those seeking admittance to the Florida Bar, and existing lawyers, for both Investigative Hearings and Formal Hearings in front of The Florida Bar. For more information about our services please call (888) 760-6552.