When practicing law pro se, can one have the assistance of a paralegal? Lawyers often use paralegals and legal assistants to prepare legal documents. While only certified lawyers may practice law, paralegals can still prepare legal documents if a lawyer oversees the work and accepts responsibility for it. With this in mind, would a non-lawyer practicing law for oneself (acting pro se) be able to have a paralegal prepare legal documents so long as the pro se non-lawyer oversees the work and accepts responsibility for it? After all, pro se non-lawyers are permitted to practice law for themselves. Say, for example, I want to write a will but don't want to hire an expensive attorney. If a paralegal friend of mine were willing to help me write a will, would our arrangement be legal so long as I take responsibility for the will?
With this in mind, would a non-lawyer practicing law for oneself (acting pro se) be able to have a paralegal prepare legal documents so long as the aforementioned non-lawyer oversees the work and accepts responsibility for it? No. Critically, many things that paralegals (who are not themselves members of a licensed profession) are allowed to do under the supervision of an attorney, are not things that they are permitted to do independently. In the case of the question, the paralegal is engaged in the unauthorized practice of law if doing anything more than taking dictation and formatting documents (case law often refers to merely taking dictation as &quot;acting as a scrivener&quot;, which is not the practice of law). Unauthorized practice of law is a question of state law and varies somewhat, but the outcome in this particular fact pattern would be pretty consistent. For example, the Colorado Attorney Supreme Court has an FAQ that states: The Colorado Supreme Court has defined the “practice of law” as “act[ing] in a representative capacity in protecting, enforcing, or defending the legal rights and duties of another and in counseling, advising and assisting [another] in connection with these rights and duties.”1 The Court’s words make clear that providing legal advice to another person constitutes the practice of law, as does the selection and drafting of legal documents for use by another person.2 A nonlawyer’s exercise of legal discretion on behalf of another’s legal interest is prohibited because of potential harm to the public.3 Thus, a non-lawyer generally cannot: Provide legal advice to another person; Select legal documents on behalf of another person; Draft legal documents on behalf of another person; Interpret the law as it may apply to another person’s situation; Represent another person in any legal transaction or matter; Prepare another person’s case for trial. 1 People v. Shell, 148 P.3d 162, 167 (Colo. 2006); Denver Bar Ass'n v. Pub. Util. Comm'n, 391 P.2d 467, 471 (Colo. 1964). 2 See C.R.C.P. 202.2(2); See also Shell, 148 P.3d at 167; Denver Bar Ass'n, 391 P.2d at 471 (holding that &quot;there is no wholly satisfactory definition as to what constitutes the practice of law; it is not easy to give an all-inclusive definition....). 3 People v. Adams, 243 P.3d 256, 265 (Colo. 2010) (citing Perkins v. CTX Mortgage Co., 969 P.2d 93, 102 (Wash. 1999)). See also, e.g., Baron v. Karmin Paralegal Services, __ N.J. Super. __ (2019). The Appellate Division in Karmin found that Karmin prepared legal documents for plaintiff, which is clearly the practice of law. Id. at 13–14 (citing Cape May Cty. Bar Ass’n v. Ludlum, 45 N.J. 121, 124 (1965)).
31 USC 330 enables the Dept. of Treasury to regulate those who are in the practice of representing persons before the Department. This results in Circular 230 which is a part of the Code of Federal Regulations. Part 10.3 specifies various types who are authorized to engage in the practice. The meaning of "practice" is not defined in the federal regs or the US code, so it has its ordinary meaning. To "practice" something is to habitually do something as a profession (not necessarily for money). The situation you describe does not in any reasonable interpretation constitute being a "practice". Moreover, except for talking to an IRS agent on the phone, the actions could not be construed as "representing" (and if I am correct in surmising that this was a simultaneous conversation with 3 people on the line, this wasn't "representing" since representing meaning to "do in someone's place", not "help someone while they do"). This contrasts with the typically stricter rules about "practicing law", which forbid filling out legal forms and so on.
Every state requires at least two witnesses to a will unless it is entirely written in your own handwriting. A lawyer as a witness is fine. A spouse as a witness is not ideal as she would be an interested party if there was a dispute over whether it was executed. It may not be prohibited, but I would never do that in my practice ever. I discontinued a will signing just last week because we only had a lawyer and a spouse and not other witnesses. I would be somewhat concerned.
Barristers must represent their client as they see best A barrister who is working for you must always think about what is best for you and do their job in a way that reflects that. This does not mean that a barrister can lie on your behalf, or that they must do everything you tell them. Their duty to the court comes above even their duty to you as their client and barristers must act with independence, honesty and integrity. This means, for example, that they cannot do anything for you that would go against their duty to the court. The barrister, not the client, is in charge of strategy and tactics. For the example you give, it’s quite likely that the barrister might have preferred to be more apologetic but they have a duty to the court that supervenes their duty to their client. If the client was not apologetic, the barrister can’t say they are.
Does the HOA's lawyer have a duty or is it standard practice to label documents (including) as privileged if it contains privileged information? While it is sometimes labeled, this is done by attorneys when it is done, mostly to prevent stupid clients from sharing the information and waiving the privilege. Usually, however, documents are not marked as privileged in advance and when documents are requested from a third-party this analysis is usually done by junior attorneys and paralegals working as a team for the first time. Formal designation is not required because the definition of what is protected is defined by statute and common law rules on a uniform basis. The duty to share information with HOA members does not generally extend to privileged information. If a document that would otherwise be required to be disclosed (like attorney invoices) contains privileged information, the usual course of action is to redact the invoice so that it contains only non-privileged information (e.g. a bottom line amount owed and the date of the invoice and the matter). In an HOA context, the privilege of the HOA as a client belongs functionally to the board and its officers, not to all of the members of the HOA. Does the Association's contractor who maintains the records have a duty to act as a gatekeeper to said invoices if they are not labeled? This depends upon the contract between the Association and the contractor. A well written contract would include this duty, and spell out the mechanics of how it is implemented, but not all contracts live up to best practices. A related issue is whether a release of privileged information by an independent contractor constitutes a waiver of the privilege by the client if the contractor is not in an agent-principal relationship with the Association, which is often a determination made only after the fact by a court. Some jurisdictions' rules of civil procedure provide a waiting period between the issuance of a third-party subpoena for documents and the earliest time that those documents can be delivered to a third-party, to allow objections on grounds of privilege or another basis to be raised prior to the disclosure of the documents. Colorado Rule of Civil Procedure 45, for example, has such a provision. I don't know what the rule is in Florida on that issue.
A subpoena is nothing more than court process compelling someone to testify as a witness or to produce documents in their possession, custody and control, or both, usually in connection with a court case. Most people who are subject to a subpoena are not being asked to offer testimony that could implicate them in a crime. They simply have evidence relevant to a case. For example, bank records are routinely subpoenaed to generate evidence that can be used in a civil or criminal case against someone, even though no one accuses the bank of doing anything improper. Many witnesses are also just not bothered to testify or actively don't want to testify, even though the evidence would not personally reflect poorly on them in any way, if they are not compelled to do so. For example, they may simply be very busy at profitable activities, or may fear retaliation from people involved in the case. Also, subpoenas are not infrequently issued where the witness is personally happy to testify but needs court process to get permission to be away from work or other obligations. A subpoena can also overcome legal obligations to not voluntarily provide information even when it is not legally privileged. For example, a lawyers ethical obligation not to voluntarily share information about a client (even information that isn't attorney-client privileged like the existence of an attorney-client relationship or the amount of money that the attorney holds in a trust account for the client's benefit) is broader than the attorney-client privilege and a lawyer can be compelled to provide such information by subpoena. To invoke the 5th Amendment in a case where you are not a defendant, you must have some good faith belief that your testimony would expose you to criminal liability, something that the vast majority of witnesses under a subpoena do not. You cannot invoke the 5th Amendment, for example, to protect yourself from having to testify regarding something that may be highly embarrassing and may even constitute a violation of the law, but is not a crime. For example, you can't invoke the 5th Amendment to prevent yourself from having to admit under oath in court testimony that you cheated on your boyfriend with someone else, or that you forgot to lock up the office the night before it was burglarized, or that you lied about having won a military decoration that you publicly claimed to have won but really didn't, or that you are in default on your mortgage, or that you are out of legal immigration status. The 5th Amendment can also not be invoked to prevent you have having to testify about violations of professional ethics that are not crimes. For example, an attorney could be compelled to testify that she failed to keep confidential information private by telling her bartender client secrets. A subpoena is basically useless against a defendant in a criminal case, who has the right not to be compelled to testify in his or her own case. But, in a civil case, you can subpoena someone to testify against themselves and they then have the choice of invoking the 5th Amendment and having an adverse inference entered against them (usually resulting in them losing the case if they are a party to it), or not invoking the 5th Amendment and testifying even though truthful testimony on the subject may be incriminating and may be used against you in a criminal prosecution. Someone can also be compelled to testify regarding matters that could be self-incriminating in a civil or criminal case if someone with authority to do so (generally the relevant prosecuting attorney) grants the person compelled to testimony immunity from prosecution (usually all that must be granted is immunity from prosecution based upon the testimony offered, called "use immunity", which is still less than someone admitting to criminal conduct might need to feel comfortable if testifying voluntarily).
The UK does have free lawyers for those who cannot afford an attorney. In fact, it is even more liberal than the US, including representation in civil cases for the most part as well (there are a few exceptions, like libel, and from what I've read, even that is changing). Rather than the main source of free representation being called public defenders, they are referred to as Legal Aid, which is a government funded agency much like public defenders are in the United States. Article 47 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union provides that legal aid will be made available to those who lack sufficient resources, in so far as such aid is necessary to ensure effective access to justice. In the event legal aid is too busy to accept a new client, the court will appoint a solicitor from a list of private firms/practitioners that will act in the same capacity. Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) guarantees the right to a fair trial in both civil and criminal proceedings. This has been interpreted as providing for a general requirement of some measure of “equality of arms” between the state and the individual or between the parties in the case, and the overall structure of the article, as well as the case law of the Court, stresses the vital connection between the right to legal assistance and the general interest in guaranteeing the right to a fair trial. When faced with a criminal charge, the right to legal assistance is explicitly set out in Article 6 (3) (c). An entitlement to free legal aid in civil cases is available in cases where the absence of legal support would make any equality of arms impossible and would effectively deprive an applicant of access to the proceedings as such, for example, when a case can be filed to a court only if assisted by a lawyer in circumstances when an applicant cannot clearly afford one. My guess is, if your friend was denied counsel under legal aid, she has too much income or to many assets to qualify, or she is involved in a case that does not qualify. That said, the right to counsel in in the UK is a right for the indigent in most types of cases (even civil) and is becoming more and more fundamental as imposed by findings of the European Court of Human Rights Jurisprudence. Here is a link where you can at least begin to get some information. https://www.gov.uk/legal-aid/overview
There are two cases to distinguish: information that the other party does not want to give without court order, and information that the other party may not give without court order. Only the former case matters, of course, since the latter by definition requires a court order. So, if the other party is legally capable of giving the information, but it's commercially not sensible for them, then you'll need to sweeten the deal. And that's business, not a legal question anymore. In other words: there's no legal instrument that's at the same time equal to a court order but also different from one. When you need a court order, there's no alternative to a court order.