Recent News

June 3, 2011

Public Comment Sought on Amendments

The Supreme Court of Ohio will accept public comment until June 29 on proposed amendments to Rules of Practice including clarification of the process for admission of out-of-state attorneys.

New rules governing out-of-state attorneys who want to appear temporarily in a proceeding in Ohio became effective Jan. 1, 2011. The rules centralized the administration of pro hac vice admission through the Supreme Court’s Office of Attorney Services and require annual registration. Pro hac vice is a privilege granted by a tribunal to out-of-state attorneys not admitted to practice law in Ohio to appear before the tribunal on a limited basis.

Since Gov. Bar R. XII took effect, some attorneys seeking pro hac vice admission in Supreme Court cases have not fully complied with the motion requirements contained in the Rules of Practice.

The proposed amendments to Rule 1.2 specify that a motion for pro hac vice admission shall follow the requirements of sections a-e of Gov. Bar R. XII(2)(A)(6), including the required affidavit, and be filed with the first document on which an out-of-state attorney appears, except when filing documents to perfect an appeal. If filing to perfect an appeal, an out-of-state attorney must file a motion for pro hac vice admission within 30 days after filing an appeal, or with the first document filed after perfecting the appeal.

Proposed amendments to Rule 2.2 relate to changes regarding the procedure to perfect an appeal after a sua sponte en banc consideration by an appeals court. Proposed changes to Rule 8.5 reduce the number of copies required for jurisdictional memoranda and also require that jurisdictional memoranda and merit briefs be single-sided. Proposed changes to Rule 18.3 place additional requirements on the Clerk of the Supreme Court to notify all parties or counsel upon the filing of a certification order.

Comments on the proposed rules should be submitted in writing to Kristina Frost, Clerk of Court, kristina.frost@sc.ohio.gov.