Admission of attorneys from other jurisdictions; requirements; fees

31.12(1) An applicant who meets the requirements of this rule and rule 31.13 may, in the discretion of the court, be admitted to the practice of law in this state without examination. 31.12(2) The applicant must file the application with the National Conference of Bar Examiners through its online character and fitness application process. The applicant must pay a nonrefundable administrative fee of $900 to the office of professional regulation at the time of filing the application. The character investigation services of the NCBE will be procured in all cases where application for admission on motion is made. The applicant must pay the investigative fee required by the NCBE at the time of filing the application. 31.12(3) The application and supporting documents must contain specific facts and details as opposed to conclusions and must demonstrate the following: a. The applicant has been admitted to the bar of any other state of the United States, the District of Columbia, or a territory of the United States; has regularly engaged in the practice of law for at least five of the last seven years immediately preceding the date of the application; and still holds a license. For the purposes of this rule, “regularly engaged in the practice of law” means the applicant has practiced law for at least 1000 hours in that year. b. The applicant is a person of honesty, integrity, and trustworthiness, and one who will adhere to the Iowa Rules of Professional Conduct. In evaluating this factor the court may consider any findings filed with the office of professional regulation by the Commission on the Unauthorized Practice of Law pursuant to Iowa Court Rule 37.3. c. The applicant is not currently subject to lawyer discipline in any other jurisdiction. 31.12(4) The applicant must provide such information as the court deems necessary and proper in connection with the application. If any changes occur that affect the applicant’s answers, the applicant must immediately amend the application. 31.12(5) The applicant must designate the supreme court clerk for service of process. 31.12(6) For purposes of this rule, the practice of law includes the following activities: a. Representation of one or more clients in the practice of law. b. Service as a lawyer with a local, state, or federal agency. c. The teaching of law as a full-time instructor in a law school approved by the Council of the Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar of the American Bar Association in this state or some other state. d. The discharge of actual legal duties as a member of one of the armed services of the United States, if certified as the practice of law by the judge advocate general of such service. e. Service as a judge in a federal, state, or local court of record. f. Service as a judicial law clerk. g. Service as corporate counsel. Ch 31, p.10 ADMISSION TO THE BAR February 2026 h. Service as an employee or officer of any business, but only if such service would ordinarily constitute the practice of law and was performed in a jurisdiction in which the applicant has been admitted to practice. 31.12(7) For purposes of this rule, the practice of law does not include work that, as undertaken, constituted the unauthorized practice of law in the jurisdiction in which it was performed or in the jurisdiction in which the clients receiving the unauthorized services were located. 31.12(8) The following applicants are not eligible for admission on motion: a. An applicant who has failed a bar examination administered in this state within five years of the date of filing of the application under this rule. b. An applicant who has failed five or more bar examinations. c. An applicant whose Iowa license is in exempt or inactive status under the provisions of Iowa Court Rule 39.7 or 41.7. d. An applicant who has been disbarred and not reinstated or whose license is currently suspended in any other jurisdiction. 31.12(9) An application for admission without examination that has not been granted will be deemed administratively withdrawn one year from the date the application was filed with the office of professional regulation. If the court finds that administrative withdrawal of the application would work a hardship on the applicant and that sufficient cause exists, the court may extend the application beyond the one-year withdrawal date for a period of time not exceeding an additional six months. [Court Order July 2, 1975; September 20, 1976; February 12, 1981; Note September 30, 1981; Court Order December 17, 1982; December 30, 1983; April 23, 1985; November 8, 1985; March 31, 1986, effective May 1, 1986; November 21, 1991, effective January 2, 1992; November 30, 1994, effective January 3, 1995; January 17, 1995, effective March 1, 1995; June 5, 1996, effective July 1, 1996; (Prior to July 1, 1996, Court Rule 114); May 2, 1997; October 11, 2001; November 9, 2001, effective February 15, 2002; February 22, 2002; April 20, 2005, effective July 1, 2005; August 6, 2007; February 14, 2008, effective April 1, 2008; October 15, 2008; August 10, 2009; January 19, 2010; July 13, 2012; December 10, 2012; August 21, 2013; September 14, 2017, effective November 2, 2017; December 13, 2017, effective January 1, 2018; November 16, 2018, effective December 15, 2018; October 24, 2019, effective January 1, 2020; July 7, 2023; February 24, 2026, effective July 1, 2026]