THE FLORIDA BAR RE: AMENDMENT TO FLORIDA BAR INTEGRATION RULE, ART. XI, RULE 11.03(2)(C) (DISQUALIFICATION OF MEMBERS OF GRIEVANCE COMMITTEES)
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The Florida Supreme Court approved The Florida Bar's petition to amend Article XI, Rule 11.03(2)(c) of the Florida Bar Integration Rule to establish specific disqualification criteria for members of grievance committees, including prohibitions based on kinship, financial interests, and personal interests that could affect the proceedings.
The Court approved the amendment to Rule 11.03(2)(c), adopting the disqualification prohibitions for grievance committee members based on kinship, financial interests, and personal interests that could affect proceedings.
[1] A grievance committee must consist of at least three members, with at least one-third being nonlawyers.
[2] A member of a grievance committee must recuse themselves if they are related by blood or marriage to the complainant or accused attorney.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“No member of a grievance committee shall perform any grievance committee function when that member (1) is related by blood or marriage to the complainant or accused attorney. (2) has a financial, business, property or personal interest in the matter under consideration, or with the accused attorney or complainant. (3) has a personal interest which could be affected by the outcome of the pro-, ceedings or which could affect the outcome.”
Establishes the three primary disqualification standards for grievance committee members
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceThe Florida Bar petitioned the Florida Supreme Court to amend the grievance committee membership rules. The proposed amendment established specific gr…
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PER CURIAM.
The Florida Bar has petitioned this Court to amend the Florida Bar Integration Rule, Article XI, Rule 11.03(2)(c) as follows:
Membership, appointment and eligibility. Each grievance committee shall be appointed by the Board of Governors and shall consist of not less than three members. At least one-third of the committee members shall be nonlawyers. No member of a grievance committee shall perform any grievance committee function when that member. (1) is related by blood or marriage to the complainant or accused attorney.
(2) has a financial, business, property or personal interest in the matter under consideration, or with the accused attorney or complainant.
(3) has a personal interest which could be affected by the outcome of the pro-, ceedings or which could affect the outcome.
Upon notice of the above prohibitions the affected member should recuse himself from further proceedings. The grievance committee chairman shall have the power to disqualify any member from any proceeding in which any of the above prohibitions exist, and are stated of record or in writing in the file by the Chairman. When notice of a grievance committee hearing is sent to an accused attorney, such notice shall be accompanied by a list of the grievance committee members.
All appointees shall be of legal age and shall be residents of the circuit or have their principal office in the circuit. The lawyer members of the committee shall have been members of The Florida Bar for not less than five years.
Finding that this amendment is an improvement to the existing rule, we hereby approve the petition and the rule is amended as requested.
It is so ordered.
SUNDBERG, C. J., and ADKINS, BOYD, OVERTON, ALDERMAN and MCDONALD, JJ., concur.