2015 -- H 5630

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LC001715

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2015

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO CRIMINAL OFFENSES -- LAW PRACTICE

     Introduced By: Representatives Lally, Keable, and Shekarchi

     Date Introduced: February 25, 2015

     Referred To: House Judiciary

     It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

     SECTION 1. Section 11-27-2 of the General Laws in Chapter 11-27 entitled "Law

Practice" is hereby amended to read as follows:

     11-27-2. "Practice of law" defined. -- "Practice law" as used in this chapter means the

doing of any act for another person usually done by attorneys at law in the course of their

profession, and, without limiting the generality of the definitions in this section, includes the

following:

      (1) The appearance or acting as the attorney, solicitor, or representative of another

person before any court, referee, master, auditor, division, department, commission, board,

judicial person, or body authorized or constituted by law to determine any question of law or fact

or to exercise any judicial power, or the preparation of pleadings or other legal papers incident to

any action or other proceeding of any kind before or to be brought before the court or other body;

      (2) The giving or tendering to another person for a consideration, direct or indirect, of

any advice or counsel pertaining to a law question or a court action or judicial proceeding brought

or to be brought;

      (3) The undertaking or acting as a representative or on behalf of another person to

commence, settle, compromise, adjust, or dispose of any civil or criminal case or cause of action;

      (4) The preparation or drafting for another person of a will, codicil, corporation

organization, amendment, or qualification papers, or any instrument which requires legal

knowledge and capacity and is usually prepared by attorneys at law.

     (5) The evaluation of legal rights and obligations of buyers, sellers, lenders or borrowers

in a real estate transaction, including, but not limited to, representation of the buyer in examining

the title and removing exceptions to the title, supervising the disbursement of funds which are not

regulated by chapter 20.5 of title 5 and responding to questions and ramifications of a transaction

by which title to real estate is transferred or used as security for the repayment of a debt or the

performance of an obligation with the exception of home equity lines of credit, or title I loans in

which the lender is acting a pro se capacity and no evaluation of exceptions to title is required;

provided however, that a holder of a license pursuant to chapter 20.5 of title 5 shall not be

precluded from responding to questions and explaining ramifications arising out of an offer to

purchase, or a purchase and sales agreement with any addenda thereto, and real estate disclosures.

     (6) The practice of law is regulated by the state of Rhode Island and the Rhode Island

supreme court in conjunction with the Rhode Island bar association and all attorneys so licensed

shall remain a member in good standing in order to be engaged in the "practice of law" as defined

herein, provided that no city or town may promulgate rules or regulations governing the practice

of law nor shall any city or town require a separate license to practice law within the boundaries

of any municipality nor pass any law, ordinance or resolution requiring the licensure or

registration of any attorney or law office.

     SECTION 2. Section 11-27-16 of the General Laws in Chapter 11-27 entitled "Law

Practice" is hereby amended to read as follows:

     11-27-16. Practices permitted to corporations and associations. -- (a) Nothing in §§

11-27-2 -- 11-27-11 or §§ 11-27-16 -- 11-27-18 shall be construed to limit or prevent:

      (1) Any corporation, or its officers or agents, lawfully engaged in the insuring of titles to

real property from conducting its business, and the drawing of deeds, mortgages, and other legal

instruments in or in connection with the conduct of the business of the corporation;

      (2) Any public utility corporation or insurance company, or its officers or agents, from

adjusting claims against the corporation or company or those insured by the company with the

restrictions provided in § 11-27-9, or the company, or its officers or agents, from advertising to

furnish or from furnishing any attorney at law to represent those insured by the company as

provided in its policies;

      (3) Any corporation or association, or its officers or agents, from drawing, in the regular

course of its business, any note, bill, draft, bill of sale, conditional bill of sale, or any ordinary

business agreement to which it is a party;

      (4) Any corporate administrator, executor, guardian, trustee, or other fiduciary, or its

officers or agents, from preparing and filing inventories and accounts and income, inheritance,

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and estate tax returns, and from attending to the allowance of uncontested accounts in relation to

the fiduciary estates;

      (5) Any nonprofit sharing credit corporation or association, or its officers or agents,

licensed under former Chapter 1782 of the Public Laws, 1931, from collecting or adjusting, as

incidental to its main purposes, contract claims of its own members. However, if the aid of any

court is to be invoked on a claim, it shall be turned back to the creditor member for reference to

his or her own attorney at law;

      (6) Any nonprofit sharing automobile service corporation or association, or its officers or

agents, from furnishing the services of an attorney at law, who resides and practices exclusively

in another state or country, to its members who reside in this state;

      (7) Any person or corporation, or its officers or clerks, whose principal source of income

is his or its commissions or profits from his, her, or its selling or leasing real estate, or both, and

who regularly maintains an office for that purpose, from drafting deeds, mortgages, leases, and

agreements in connection with sales or leases made or negotiated by him, her, or it; provided, that

in every such case the drafter shall so endorse his or her full name and business address upon the

face of the instrument that the endorsement will be recorded if the instrument is recorded;

      (8) Any automobile club or association from paying or agreeing to pay for the services of

an attorney to advise and defend its members, providing the attorney is of the member's own

selection and is not subject to the control of the club or association; or

      (9) Any nonprofit credit counseling corporation or association, or its officers or agents,

from providing financial and budgetary advice and judgment to individuals in connection with:

      (i) The creation of a budgetary plan;

      (ii) The creation of a plan whereby an individual turns over an agreed amount of his or

her income to a nonprofit credit counseling corporation which distributes it to his or her creditors

in accordance with a plan which they have approved and which may provide for smaller

payments or a longer term than the original contract;

      (iii) The providing of educational services relating to the use of credit; or

      (iv) Any combination of paragraphs (i) through (iii) of this subdivision.

      (b) No corporation established for the purpose of providing credit counseling shall

engage in the practice of law, and an individual receiving credit counseling shall, when necessary,

be referred to an attorney of his or her own choice, the local bar association referral service, or a

local legal aid program, whichever may seem most appropriate.

     (10) Any domestically chartered title insurance company or any corporation, its officers

or agents, the stock of which is owned exclusively by attorneys licensed to practice law by and in

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the state of Rhode Island, lawfully engaged in performing real estate closings, from conducting its

business; provided, however, that any such officer or agent to the extent not an attorney, shall act

under the direct supervision of an attorney duly licensed by this state.

     SECTION 3. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO CRIMINAL OFFENSES -- LAW PRACTICE

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     This act would expand the definition of the practice of law to include activities relating to

conducting real estate closings and the rendering of advice in connection with those activities. It

would provide certain exceptions to those licensed real estate brokers. It would also prohibit

municipalities from imposing licensing requirements on attorneys licensed in the state of Rhode

Island.

     This act would take effect upon passage.

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