Certification by the committee on functional equivalency

1. Certification prior to application. A prospective applicant who fails to meet the accreditation requirement of Rule 51(1)(c) shall not be permitted to apply for admission to practice law, including applying to sit for the bar examination, unless the committee on functional equivalency certifies that he or she has met the qualifications for functional equivalency as set forth in this rule. To request certification, a prospective applicant must petition the committee on functional equivalency in accordance with the provisions of this rule and the policies and procedures of the committee. Only prospective applicants satisfying the qualifications set forth in paragraphs (a), (b), (c), or (d) of this subsection may petition for such certification. A prospective applicant must include with the petition satisfactory evidence that he or she meets these qualifications; otherwise the petition shall be summarily denied, without review. The following qualifications are required for certification: (a) Graduation from an unaccredited law school within the American Bar Association’s accreditation jurisdiction and satisfactory evidence that: (1) the petitioner has been admitted to practice law in any jurisdiction, including another state of the United States of America, a territory of the United States of America, the District of Columbia, or a foreign country; and (2) the petitioner has been, for at least 5 of the preceding 7 years, lawfully engaged in the full-time practice of law in the jurisdiction where the petitioner is admitted to practice law, provided that if the legal work experience takes place in a foreign country, it is a country where the English common law substantially forms the basis of that country’s jurisprudence; and (3) the petitioner’s legal education, as augmented by such subsequent law-related education or subsequent and substantive law-related experience, is now functionally equivalent to an education provided by a law school accredited by the American Bar Association, including, but not limited to, evidence of admission to practice law in another jurisdiction; engaging in the practice of law in another jurisdiction; authoring legal articles or publications; acting as a mediator, arbitrator, negotiator, or judge pro tem; attending or speaking at continuing legal education approved for accreditation by a jurisdiction in the United States; being enrolled in courses at or repeating first-year courses at an American Bar Association accredited law school; teaching at a law school accredited by the American Bar Association; teaching legal courses at a university or community college in the United States; being actively involved as a member of a professional legal association; holding positions in professional legal organizations; or being admitted pro hac vice in a United States jurisdiction. (b) Graduation from a law school that was not accredited by the American Bar Association at the time of the petitioner’s graduation but which has since achieved full accreditation and satisfactory evidence that: (1) the law school achieved American Bar Association full accreditation no more than 3 years after the petitioner’s graduation; and (2) the legal education received is functionally equivalent to an education provided by a law school accredited by the American Bar Association. (c) Graduation from a foreign law school outside the accreditation jurisdiction of the American Bar Association, provided that such legal education is from a law school located in a country where English common law substantially forms the basis of that country’s jurisprudence and satisfactory evidence that the petitioner either: (1) meets the requirements of Rule 51.5(1)(a) above; or (2) received a legal education that is functionally equivalent to an education provided by a law school accredited by the American Bar Association. (d) Graduation with an LL.M. degree from an accredited law school within the American Bar Association’s accreditation jurisdiction will be deemed to be functionally equivalent to receiving a law degree from a law school with American Bar Association accreditation. 2. Practice of law. For purposes of this rule, the term “practice of law” shall mean: (a) private practice as a sole practitioner or for a law firm, legal services office, legal clinic or the like; (b) practice as an attorney for an individual, a corporation, partnership, trust, or other entity, with the primary duties of furnishing legal counsel, researching legal issues, drafting legal documents, pleadings, and memoranda, interpreting and giving advice regarding the law, or preparing, trying or presenting cases before courts, departments of government or administrative agencies; (c) practice as an attorney for the federal government or for a state government with the same primary duties described in paragraph (b) of this subsection; (d) employment as a judge, magistrate, referee, arbitrator, mediator, or similar official, provided that such employment is available only to licensed attorneys; (e) legal service in the armed forces of the United States; (f) employment as a full-time teacher of law at a law school accredited by the American Bar Association; or (g) any combination of the above. 3. Substantive Law-Related Experience. For purposes of this rule, the term “substantive law-related experience” means the provision of law-related services, including, but not limited to, drafting pleadings, legal documents or correspondence, completing forms, preparing reports or charts, performing legal research, and interviewing clients or witnesses. Substantive law-related experience does not include routine clerical or administrative duties. 4. Filing. A complete petition for certification under this rule must be filed with the admissions director no later than September 1 for the upcoming February bar examination cycle, and no later than January 1 for the upcoming July bar examination cycle. The petition must be verified, and shall contain a statement of facts accompanied by copies of all relevant documents, a statement of each ground upon which relief is alleged to be warranted, and legal points and authorities, setting forth the legal basis for each ground for the relief requested. The committee shall be permitted to request additional information or documents from the petitioner, as needed, to render a recommendation. Additionally, the admissions director shall be permitted to hold an application in abeyance if the application is not complete in time for a recommendation to be made for the upcoming bar examination cycle until the next bar examination cycle; however, in no event shall an application be extended more than 12 months after the initial filing date, in which event the petitioner will be required to file a new application. 5. Refer to committee on moral character and fitness. If the committee has noted questions relating to the petitioner’s ability to meet the moral character and fitness requirements of Rule 51(1)(d), (e), (f), (g), (h), or (i), the committee may recommend to the board of bar examiners that the petitioner be referred to the committee on moral character and fitness for further investigation and/or hearings prior to review by the committee on functional equivalency. 6. Favorable recommendation. If the committee on functional equivalency recommends that certification be granted, the committee shall file a report with the board of bar examiners, together with proof of service by mail or email on the petitioner, certifying to the board of bar examiners that the petitioner has met the qualifications set forth in Rule 51.5(1)(a), (b), (c), or (d). Service by mail shall be complete upon mailing. The report shall be filed with the board of bar examiners within 30 days of the determinations, unless otherwise ordered by the board of bar examiners. Upon such a certification, the board of bar examiners shall permit the petitioner to apply for admission, unless the board determines that further investigation is necessary. The petitioner may, in the board’s discretion, be permitted to sit for the bar examination if the petitioner meets all other applicable requirements. 7. Adverse recommendation. If the committee on functional equivalency recommends that certification be denied, the committee shall file a report with the board of bar examiners, together with proof of service by mail or email on the petitioner, describing the basis for its adverse recommendation. Service by mail shall be complete upon mailing. The report shall be filed with the board of bar examiners within 30 days of the determination, unless otherwise ordered by the board of bar examiners. Absent a timely verified petition for review filed in accordance with this rule, the board of bar examiners shall approve the adverse recommendation of the committee, unless the board of bar examiners determines that further investigation is necessary. 8. Notice and review. Any petitioner notified of an adverse decision may, within 15 days from the date of service of the decision, file a verified petition for review with the supreme court, which shall be accompanied by proof of service of a copy upon the admissions director. Service by mail shall be complete upon mailing. Such petition shall contain any relevant documentation necessary for the court’s understanding of the matter, a statement of facts supported by adequate citation to any record, and legal points and authorities setting forth the legal basis for each ground upon which the committee’s recommendation is alleged to be erroneous. Within 15 days of service of any verified petition, the board of bar examiners shall submit the committee’s report to the court. Additionally, within 15 days of service of any verified petition, the board of bar examiners and/or the committee on functional equivalency, or their representative, may file an answer to any issues raised in the petition. If the court is of the opinion that the committee’s recommendation should not be disturbed, it may deny the petition. Should the court determine that the petitioner is entitled to relief, it may direct the board of bar examiners to permit the petitioner to file an application for admission and to process the application in accordance with Supreme Court Rules 49 to 75 . 9. Burden of proof. In any proceeding before the committee on functional equivalency, or before the court, the petitioner shall have the burden of proving that he or she meets the qualifications set forth in Rule 51.5(1)(a), (b), (c), or (d) by clear and convincing evidence. Should a petitioner fail to meet this burden of proof, the committee shall refuse to certify that the petitioner meets the requirements of this rule, and the court shall refuse to disturb the adverse recommendation of the committee. [Added; effective June 24, 1998; amended; effective April 11, 2025.]