The rules of the North Carolina State Bar are published officially in the North Carolina Reports and in Title 27 of the North Carolina Administrative Code. These rules were adopted by the North Carolina State Bar Council and approved by the North Carolina Supreme Court pursuant to N.C.G.S. §84-21.
The rules that follow are the administrative rules of the North Carolina State Bar codified in Chapter 1 of Title 27 of the N.C. Administrative Code; they govern the administration of the State Bar, including such things as the organization of the State Bar council, membership and dues requirements, procedures for the discipline of lawyers, and the regulation of organizations practicing law. They also contain the procedures for the various programs of the North Carolina State Bar, including the client security fund, continuing legal education, specialization, IOLTA (interest on lawyers’ trust accounts), and the Lawyer Assistance Program.
A “History Note” after each rule sets forth the statutory authority for the rule. In 1994 all State Bar rules in existence were reorganized and renumbered for accurate placement in the North Carolina Administrative Code. To accomplish this task, the Supreme Court approved the readoption of the rules on December 8, 1994. Therefore, “Readopted Effective December 8, 1994” appears after many of the rules. For subsequent history, the date upon which a new rule or amendment to a rule was approved by the Supreme Court is listed after “Amendments Approved by the Supreme Court.” There may be multiple dates upon which a particular rule was amended.
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