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Alabama Rule 1.15 Safekeeping Property Definitions. As used in this rule, the terms below shall have the following meaning: "IOLTA account" means a pooled interest- or dividend-bearing trust account benefiting the Alabama Law Foundation or the Alabama Civil Justice Foundation established in an eligible institution for the deposit of nominal or short-term funds of clients or third persons. "Eligible institution" means any bank or savings and loan association authorized by federal or state laws to do business in Alabama, whose deposits are insured by an agency of the federal government, or any open-end investment company registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission and authorized by federal or state laws to do business in Alabama. Eligible institutions must meet the requirements set out in section (g). "Interest- or dividend-bearing trust account" means a federally insured checking account or a business checking account with an automated investment feature, such as an overnight sweep and investment in a government money-market fund or daily (overnight) financial-institution repurchase agreement invested solely in or fully collateralized by U.S. Government Securities. A daily financial-institution repurchase agreement may be established only with an eligible institution that is 'well capitalized' or 'adequately capitalized' as those terms are defined by applicable federal statutes and regulations. An open-end money-market fund must hold itself out as a money-market fund as defined by applicable federal statutes and regulations under the Investment Company Act of 1940, and, at the time of the investment, have total assets of at least $250,000,000. The funds covered by this rule shall be subject to withdrawal upon request and without delay except as permitted by law. "Allowable reasonable fees" means: ((1) per check charges, (2) per deposit charges, (3) a fee in lieu of minimum balance, (4) Federal deposit insurance fees, (5) sweep fees, and (6) a reasonable IOLTA account administrative fee. "U.S. Government Securities" means U.S. Treasury obligations and obligations issued or guaranteed as to principal and interest by the United States or any agency or instrumentality thereof. (a) A lawyer shall hold the property of clients or third persons that is in the lawyer's possession in connection with a representation separate from the lawyer's own property. Funds shall be kept in a separate account maintained in the state where the lawyer's office is situated, or elsewhere with the consent of the client or third person. No funds of a lawyer shall be deposited in such a trust account, except (1) unearned attorney fees that are being held until earned, and (2) funds sufficient to pay bank service charges on that account or to obtain a waiver thereof. Interest or dividends, if any, on funds, less fees charged to the account, other than overdraft and returned item charges, shall belong to the client or third person, except as provided in Rule 1.15(g), and the lawyer shall have no right or claim to the interest. Other property shall be identified as such and appropriately safeguarded. Complete records of such account funds and other property shall be kept by the lawyer and shall be preserved for six (6) years after termination of the representation. A lawyer shall designate all such trust accounts, whether general or specific, as well as deposit slips and all checks drawn thereon, as either an 'Attorney Trust Account,' an 'Attorney Escrow Account,' or an 'Attorney Fiduciary Account.' A lawyer shall designate all business accounts, as well as other deposit slips and all checks drawn thereon, as a 'Business Account,' a 'Professional Account,' an 'Office Account,' a 'General Account,' a 'Payroll Account,' or a 'Regular Account.' However, nothing in this rule shall prohibit a lawyer from using any additional description or designation for a specific business or trust account, including, for example, fiduciary accounts maintained by the lawyer as executor, guardian, trustee, receiver, or agent or in any other fiduciary capacity. (b) Upon
receiving funds or other property in which a client or third person has an
interest from a source other than the client or the third person, a lawyer shall
promptly notify the client or third person. Except as stated in this rule or
otherwise permitted by law or by agreement with the client, a lawyer shall
promptly deliver to the client or third person any funds or other property that
the client or third person is entitled to receive and, upon request by the
client or third person, shall promptly render a full accounting regarding that
property. (d) A lawyer shall not make disbursements of a client's funds from separate accounts containing the funds of more than one client unless the client's funds are collected funds; provided, however, that if a lawyer has a reasonable and prudent belief that a deposit of an instrument payable at or through a bank representing the client's funds will be collected promptly, then the lawyer may, at the lawyer's own risk, disburse the client's uncollected funds. If collection does not occur, then the lawyer shall, as soon as practical, but in no event more than five (5) working days after notice of noncollection, replace the funds in the separate account. (e) A lawyer shall request that the financial institution where the lawyer maintains a trust account file a report to the Office of General Counsel of the Alabama State Bar in every instance where a properly payable item or order to pay is presented against a lawyer's trust account with insufficient funds to pay the item or order when presented and either (1) the item or payment order is returned because there are insufficient funds in the account to pay the item or order or, (2) if the request is honored by the financial institution and the overdraft created thereby is not paid within three (3) business days of the date the financial institution sends notification of the overdraft to the lawyer. The report of the financial institution shall contain the same information, or a copy of that information, forwarded to the lawyer who presented the item or order. A lawyer shall enter into an agreement with the financial institution that holds the lawyer's trust account pursuant to which the financial institution agrees to file the report required by this rule. Every lawyer shall have the duty to assure that his or her trust accounts maintained with a financial institution in Alabama are pursuant to such an agreement. This duty belongs to the lawyer and not to the financial institution. The filing of a report with the Office of General Counsel pursuant to this paragraph shall constitute a proper basis for an investigation by the Office of General Counsel of the lawyer who is the subject of the report, pursuant to the Alabama Rules of Disciplinary Procedure. Nothing in this rule shall preclude a financial institution from charging a lawyer or a law firm a fee for producing the report and maintaining the records required by this Rule. Every lawyer and law firm maintaining a trust account in Alabama shall hereby be conclusively deemed to have consented to the reporting and production requirements mandated by this rule and shall hold harmless the financial institution for its compliance with the aforesaid reporting and production requirements. Neither the agreement with the financial institution nor the reporting or production of records by a financial institution made pursuant to this rule shall be deemed to create in the financial institution a duty to exercise a standard of care or a contract with third parties that may sustain a loss as a result of a lawyer's overdrawing a trust account. A lawyer shall not fail to produce any of the records required to be maintained by these Rules at the request of the Office of General Counsel, the Disciplinary Commission, or the Disciplinary Board. This obligation shall be in addition to, and not in lieu of, any other requirements of the Rules of Professional Conduct or Rules of Disciplinary Procedure for the production of documents and evidence. (f) A lawyer, except a lawyer not engaged in active practice pursuant to Alabama Code 1975, §§ 34-3-17 and -18, shall maintain a separate account to hold funds of a client or third person. Every lawyer admitted to practice in this State shall annually certify to the Secretary of the Alabama State Bar that all IOLTA eligible funds are held in an IOLTA Account, or that the lawyer is exempt because the lawyer: does not have an office within the State of Alabama; does not hold funds for clients or third persons; is not engaged in the active practice of law; is a judge, attorney general, public defender, U.S. attorney, district attorney, on duty with the armed services or employed by a local, state or federal government, and is not otherwise engaged in the private practice of law; or is a corporate or other in-house counsel or teacher of law and is not otherwise engaged in the private practice of law. Certification may be made by a firm on behalf of all lawyers in a firm. (g) Lawyers shall hold in IOLTA accounts all funds of clients or third persons that are nominal in amount or that the lawyer expects to be held for a short period and from which no income could be earned for the client or third person in excess of the costs incurred to secure such income. In no event shall a lawyer receive the interest on an IOLTA account. In determining whether to deposit funds into an IOLTA account, a lawyer shall consider the following factors: the amount of interest or dividends likely to be earned during the period the funds are expected to be deposited; the estimated cost of establishing and administering a non-IOLTA trust account for the benefit of the client or third person, including the cost of the lawyer's services and the cost of preparing any tax reports required for interest accruing to the benefit of a client or third person; the ability of financial institutions or lawyers or law firms to calculate and pay interest to individual clients or third persons; and any other circumstances that affect the ability of the client or third-person funds to earn income in excess of the costs incurred to secure such funds. A lawyer shall review the IOLTA account at reasonable intervals to determine whether changed circumstances require further action with respect to the funds of any client or third person. The determination whether the funds of a client or third person can earn income in excess of costs as provided in (g) above shall rest in the sound judgment of the lawyer or law firm, and no lawyer shall be charged with an ethical impropriety or breach of professional conduct based on the good-faith exercise of such judgment. Offering IOLTA accounts is voluntary for financial institutions. Lawyers may place trust accounts only in eligible institutions that meet the requirements of this rule, including: Interest Rates: Eligible institutions shall pay on IOLTA accounts the highest interest rate or dividend the financial institution offers to its non-IOLTA customers when the IOLTA account meets or exceeds the same minimum balance and other eligibility requirements, if any. A financial institution shall pay on IOLTA accounts the highest interest rate or dividend generally available among the following product types or any comparable product type (if the product type is available from the financial institution to its non-IOLTA customers) by either using the identified product type as an IOLTA account or paying the equivalent interest rate or dividend on the existing IOLTA account in lieu of actually establishing the highest interest rate or dividend product: 1. An interest-bearing checking account such as a negotiable order of withdrawal (NOW) account, or business checking account with interest. 2. A business checking account with an automated investment feature, such as an overnight sweep and investment in repurchase agreements or money-market funds as described in the definitions. 3. A government (such as for municipal deposits) interest-bearing checking account. 4. A checking account paying preferred interest rates, such as money-market or indexed rates. 5. Any other suitable interest- or dividend- bearing deposit account offered by the institution to its non-IOLTA customers. As an alternative, the financial institution may pay: 6. An amount on funds, net of allowable reasonable fees, which would otherwise qualify for investment options described in (1) through (4) above equal to 55% of the Federal Funds Target Rate as of the first business day of the quarter or other IOLTA remitting period. The following considerations will apply to determinations of comparability: 1. Accounts that have limited check-writing capability required by law or government regulation may not be considered as comparable to IOLTA in Alabama. Such accounts, however, are distinguished from checking accounts that pay money-market interest rates on account balances without the check-writing limitations. Such accounts are included in the option 4 class identified above. Additionally, rates that are not generally available to other account holders, such as special promotional rates used to attract new customers, are not considered for comparability in Alabama. 2. For the purpose of determining compliance with the above provisions, all participating financial institutions shall report in a form and manner prescribed by the Alabama Law Foundation and Alabama Civil Justice Foundation the highest interest or dividend rate for each of the accounts they offer within the above-listed account types. The foundations will certify participating financial institutions' compliance with this rule on an annual basis. 3. In determining the highest interest rate or dividend generally available from the institution to its non-IOLTA customers, the eligible institution may consider factors, in addition to the IOLTA account balance, customarily considered by the institution when setting interest rates or dividends for its customers, provided that those factors do not discriminate between IOLTA accounts and accounts of non-IOLTA customers and provided further that those factors do not include that the account is an IOLTA account. Pursuant to a written agreement between the lawyer and the eligible institution, interest on the IOLTA account shall be remitted at least quarterly to the Alabama Law Foundation or the Alabama Civil Justice Foundation, as the lawyer shall designate. Interest or dividends shall be calculated in accordance with the institution's standard practice for non-IOLTA account customers, less reasonable fees, if any, in connection with the deposited funds. Allowable reasonable fees, as defined in this rule, are the only service charges or fees permitted to be deducted from interest or dividend earned on IOLTA accounts. Allowable reasonable fees may be deducted from interest or dividends on an IOLTA account only at such rates and under such circumstances as is the eligible institution's customary practice for its non-IOLTA customers. All other fees and charges shall not be assessed against the interest or dividends earned on the IOLTA account, but rather shall be the responsibility of, and may be charged to, the lawyer maintaining the IOLTA account. Fees or charges in excess of the interest or dividend earned on the account for any month or quarter shall not be taken from interest or dividend earned on other IOLTA accounts or from the principal of the account. Financial institutions may elect to pay higher rates than required by this rule or to waive any or all fees on IOLTA accounts. A statement should be transmitted to the Alabama Law Foundation or the Alabama Civil Justice Foundation with each remittance showing the period for which the remittance is made, the name of the lawyer or law firm from whose IOLTA account the remittance is being sent, the IOLTA account number, the rate of interest applied, the gross interest or dividend earned during the period, the amount and description of any service charges or fees assessed during the remittance period, if any, the average account balance for the remittance period, and the net amount of interest or dividend remitted for the period. A copy of the statement shall also be sent to the lawyer. (h) All interest or dividends transmitted to and received by the Alabama Law Foundation pursuant to Rule 1.15(g) shall be distributed by it for one or more of the following purposes: (1) to provide legal aid to the poor; (2) to provide law-student loans; (3) to provide for the administration of justice; (4) to provide law-related educational programs to the public; (5) to help maintain public law libraries; and (6) for such other programs for the benefit of the public as the Supreme Court of the State of Alabama specifically approves from time to time. (i) All interest or dividends transmitted to and received by the Alabama Civil Justice Foundation pursuant to Rule 1.15(g) shall be distributed by it for one of more of the following purposes: (1) to provide financial assistance to organizations or groups providing aid or assistance to: (A) underprivileged children; (B) traumatically injured children or adults; (C) the needy; (D) handicapped children or adults; or (E) drug and alcohol rehabilitation programs; (2) to be used in such other programs for the benefit of the public as the Supreme Court of the State of Alabama specifically approves from time to time. (j) A lawyer shall not fail to produce, at the request of the Office of General Counsel, the Disciplinary Commission, or the Disciplinary Board, any of the records required to be maintained by these Rules. This obligation shall be in addition to, and not in lieu of, any other requirements of the Rules of Professional Conduct or the Rules of Disciplinary Procedure for the production of documents and evidence. COMMENT A lawyer should hold property of others with the care required of a professional fiduciary. Securities should be kept in a safe deposit box, except when some other form of safekeeping is warranted by special circumstances. All property which is the property of clients or third persons should be kept separate from the lawyer's business and personal property and, if monies, in one or more trust accounts. Separate trust accounts may be warranted when administering estate monies or acting in similar fiduciary capacities. Lawyers often receive funds from third parties from which the lawyer's fee will be paid. If there is risk that the client may divert the funds without paying the fee, the lawyer is not required to remit the portion from which the fee is to be paid. However, a lawyer may not hold funds to coerce a client into accepting the lawyer's contention. The disputed portion of the funds should be kept in trust and the lawyer should suggest means for prompt resolution of the dispute, such as arbitration. The undisputed portion of the funds shall be promptly distributed. Third parties, such as a client's creditors, may have just claims against funds or other property in a lawyer's custody. A lawyer may have a duty under applicable law to protect such third-party claims against wrongful interference by the client, and accordingly may refuse to surrender the property to the client. However, a lawyer should not unilaterally assume to arbitrate a dispute between the client and the third party. The obligations of a lawyer under this Rule are independent of those arising from activity other than rendering legal services. For example, a lawyer who serves as an escrow agent is governed by the applicable law relating to fiduciaries even though the lawyer does not render legal services in the transaction. A "clients' security fund" provides a means through the collective efforts of the bar to reimburse persons who have lost money or property as a result of dishonest conduct of a lawyer. Where such a fund has been established, a lawyer should participate.
A lawyer
engaged in active practice is required to maintain a separate account to hold
funds of a client, unless the lawyer gives written notice to the Secretary of
the Alabama State Bar. A lawyer is engaged in active practice unless the lawyer
has obtained membership in the Alabama State Bar pursuant to the provisions of
Alabama
Code 1975, §§ 34-3-17 and -18. A lawyer may maintain more than one interest-bearing account to hold clients' funds in compliance with IOLTA (commonly known as an IOLTA account) and may open an IOLTA account at any time during the year. The depository for an IOLTA account shall remit interest either to the Alabama Law Foundation or to the Alabama Civil Justice Foundation, as the lawyer designates. A lawyer may change the beneficiary of an IOLTA account at any time. A lawyer who does not intend to maintain an IOLTA account must notify the Secretary of the Alabama State Bar as provided by Rule 1.15(g); a law firm may notify the Bar on behalf of its lawyers.
COMPARISON WITH FORMER ALABAMA CODE OF PROFESSIONAL RESPONSIBILITY Paragraph (a) extends these requirements to property of a third person that is in the lawyer's possession in connection with the representation. Paragraph (b) is substantially similar to DR 9-102(B)(1), (3) and (4). Paragraph (c) is similar to DR 9-102(A)(2), except that the requirement regarding disputes applies to property concerning which an interest is claimed by a third person as well as by a client. Paragraph (d) is similar to a provision of DR 9-102, which was unique to Alabama. This provision is carried forward into the Rules. Paragraphs (e), (f), and (g) implement the provisions of Alabama's Interest on Lawyers' Trust Accounts Rules (IOLTA). |
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