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Abstracts

The Role of Independent Paralegals in Improving the Quality and Delivery of Legal Services
Joi Pierce Cregler

This paper argues that independent paralegals can serve an integral role in increasing access to legal services in the United States and that policy makers should decriminalize the provision of skilled legal assistance by paralegals. Eliminating unauthorized practice statutes for independent paralegals could reduce the costs of legal services, expand the range of legal services provided to low- to middle-income consumers, and facilitate increased pro se representation. This paper also challenges the assumption that allowing paralegals to provide legal services would create a group of "second-class" legal service providers. It argues that independent paralegals can provide high-quality legal services in the areas of their expertise and may even achieve greater client satisfaction. Finally, the paper assesses consumer protection arguments against eliminating unauthorized practice laws and recommends a regulatory framework for licensing paralegals.

The Ethics of Unbundling Legal Services in America: Re-visiting American Legal Ethics at the Turn of the Millennium
Emily Spitser
This paper examines "unbundling" (also referred to as "discreet task representation" and "limited scope representation") as a way to increase legal services to low- to moderate-income individuals. Specifically, it addresses one of the biggest concerns surrounding the unbundling of legal services - how to maintain ethical standards and legal competence when delivering only partial legal services. The paper explores several specific ethical challenges such as competency, informed consent, conflicts, confidentiality, unauthorized practice of law, and the threat to the neutral role of courts. It also discusses recent changes to the Model Rules of Professional Responsibility and how many of these changes reflect a growing acceptance of "unbundling" in so far as it expands access to legal services. The paper concludes by noting that even with the recent changes, practitioners must still be aware that inherent conflicts remain between the rules of traditional practice and unbundled legal services.

Mandatory Pro Bono Programs in Law Schools: Opening Dialogue between the Academy and the Bar
Kahyeong Lee
This paper studies reasons for the success of mandatory pro bono reform in American Law Schools. It begins with a discussion of the historic context of mandatory pro bono reform, including an examination of the disjunction between the bar association and law schools, the roots of this disjunction, and the role it plays in legal education reforms. It analyzes some of the obstacles to mandatory pro bono reform, reasons for its ultimate success, and specific examples from particular law schools. The paper concludes by emphasizing the importance of maintaining an open dialogue between the bar association and law schools regarding legal education reform.

The Inability of Legal Aid Organizations in the U.S. to Meet the Needs of the Poor: Ways to Increase Resources & Ways to Utilize Current Resources More Effectively
Michou Nguyen

This paper analyzes methods to increase legal aid services by increasing legal aid resources and/or utilizing current legal aid resources more effectively. The paper concludes that a mandatory monetary pro bono contribution by attorneys may be the most effective method to increase legal services, followed by, in decreasing order of effectiveness: charging nominal fees, generating revenue through profit generating services, mandatory pro bono for law students, 'HMO' type legal services, and the continued lobbying of government for increased funding. The paper also concludes that increased use of technology may be the most efficient way to utilize resources more efficiently, followed by, in decreasing order of efficiency: consolidation of Legal Aid Organizations (LAOs), holding LAOs accountable, reducing quality of service but increasing quantity of clients, and allocating funds in a more geographically efficient manner.

Mandatory Pro Bono at Harvard Law School: A Student Survey
Alessia Bell, Erika Birdsall, and Nicole Gerhart

This paper examines the recent establishment of a mandatory pro bono program at Harvard Law School (HLS). Through a survey of first-year students, the authors found that those surveyed overwhelmingly supported a mandatory pro bono requirement. The respondents believed it would benefit them personally, professionally, and intellectually, and believed that it would boost the public image of HLS, promote ethically responsible lawyers, and benefit the broader community. The authors also found that the majority of respondents were not concerned about being forced to do work which conflicted with their ideological beliefs or infringed upon their rights, but that there was disagreement surrounding what should count as "uncompensated work." The authors conclude with several specific recommendations for implementing mandatory pro bono in light of this survey.

Prometheus or the Trojan Horse?:
A Look at the Prepaid Legal Services Industry in the United States
Stephen F. Herbes

This paper provides a comprehensive overview of prepaid legal service plans (PLSPs); including their history, the nuts and bolts of the plans themselves, and critiques of their effectiveness in providing legal services. It begins with a discussion of two common categories of PLSP members: group plans, such as union and employer sponsored plans; and individual plans. It then lays out how one can become a PLSP member, what types of services are offered by different PLSPs, how PLSPs select attorneys to deliver the legal services, and how consumers can evaluate the quality of service provided by a PLSP. This paper also evaluates the effectiveness of PLSPs in general, raising questions regarding the quality and efficiency of services provided, the tendency of PLSPs to create excessive litigation, and PLSPs potential failure to provide any benefit beyond the no-cost legal services already available. This paper concludes with a discussion of fundamental principles necessary to create a sustainable PLSP market, one of which is the development of PLSPs specifically targeted towards middle- to low- income individuals.

A Survey of the Prepaid Legal Services Industry, 1997
Sonia T. Banerji

This paper provides information on several different types of prepaid plans. It starts by exploring union-paid plans, their largest consumers, some of their more controversial aspects, and the practices of the biggest union-plan provider, Hyatt Legal Plans. It also discusses non-union, employer-sponsored plans and the potential advantages to employers who customize such legal services plans for their employees, citing specific examples such as Sears-Roebuck, P.R.C., and PepsiCo. This paper also provides a brief discussion on non-employer group plans, such as plans offered through churches or credit cards, and small business or business legal services plans. The paper concludes with a discussion on the lawyer's perspective of prepaid legal service plans and some of the benefits to and concerns with servicing such plans.

The Need for Comprehensive Internet Legal Advertisement Regulation
Cecilia R. Dickson

This paper provides a comprehensive discussion on the regulation of legal advertising over the Internet. First, the paper provides background on the Internet and Internet advertising practices. Next, it discusses commercial speech restrictions as set forth in U.S. Supreme Court decisions such as Bates, Virginia Pharmacy, Ohralik, and Zauderer. It also highlights more recent State court and ethics committee decisions and provides an in-depth discussion of some ethical issues overlapping Internet legal advertising, including: conflicts of interest (Model Rule 1.7), misleading advertisements (Model Rule 7.1), advertising labeling requirements (Model Rule 7.3), filing of advertisements (Model Rule 7.2 (b)), and the unauthorized practice of law (Model Rule 5.5). It further evaluates jurisdictional issues with regard to Internet regulation and argues that due to the transboundary nature of the Internet, universal regulation is necessary to provide the most appropriate and effective regulation of Internet advertising. Finally, this paper briefly discusses the potential benefits of legal advertising through the Internet, such as expanding traditional methods of delivering legal assistance so as to provide greater access to legal services for middle- and lower-income individuals.

Access to Justice: Reforming Unauthorized Practice Law,
Learning from Advanced Practice Nursing Regulation
Kristin Sostowski

This paper argues that relaxing or eliminating unauthorized practice laws might improve access to legal services by exploring similarities between independent paralegals and advance practice nurses (APNs) in the medical industry. It begins by telling the story of Rosemary Furman, a paralegal prosecuted for unauthorized practice of law, and provides a brief historical background on the development of unauthorized practice laws. It then provides an overview of some states' unauthorized practice laws, particularly noting exceptions and disparities in their standards and enforcement. This paper also examines the history of unauthorized practice in medicine, the development of APNs to meet increasing demand for medical services, and the opposition to APN medical practice. It further discusses the effectiveness of APNs in delivering medical services and state and medical board regulations of APNs. The paper concludes that states should follow a similar course in the legal context by modifying or eliminating unauthorized practice of law statutes and by adopting statutory structures for "advanced legal assistant practice" similar to those currently in place for APNs.

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