Documenti di Didattica
Documenti di Professioni
Documenti di Cultura
(a) A lawyer may communicate the fact that the lawyer does or
does not practice in particular fields of law, subject to the
requirements of Rule 7.1.
A lawyer may
-71-
-72-
SPECIALISTS
(a) Existence
There is a Commission on Certification of Attorneys as
Specialists.
Judicial Branch.
(b) Membership
The Commission shall consist of the following members
appointed by the Court of Appeals:
(1) one incumbent Circuit Court judge;
(2) one incumbent District Court judge;
(3) a full-time faculty member of the University of Baltimore
School of Law who (A) is a member of the Maryland Bar in good
standing and (B) is chosen from a list of at least three fulltime faculty members nominated by the Dean of the University of
Baltimore School of Law;
(4) a full-time faculty member of the University of Maryland
School of Law who (A) is a member of the Maryland Bar in good
standing and (B) is chosen from a list of at least three fulltime faculty members nominated by the Dean of the University of
-73-
Terms
(1) Generally
Subject to subsection (c)(3) of this Rule:
(A) the term of a judge is five years, but the judge shall
be deemed to have resigned upon ceasing to be an incumbent judge
of the court upon which the judge was serving at the time of
appointment;
(B) the term of a law school faculty member is five years,
but the faculty member shall be deemed to have resigned upon
ceasing to be a full-time faculty member of the law school where
the faculty member was employed at the time of appointment; and
(C) the term of each of the other members is five years.
(2) Reappointment
A member who serves for a full term or the unexpired term
of a former member may be reappointed for one additional term of
five years.
(3) Removal
The Court of Appeals may remove a member of the
-74-
The Chair
-75-
Subject
-76-
RECOGNITION OF SPECIALTIES
(a) In General
After investigating and considering conclusions reached by
the supreme courts or other appropriate authorities in other
states, by the American Bar Association, and by other national or
international organizations that have considered the matter, and
after soliciting and considering the views of the Maryland State
Bar Association and attorneys and judges in Maryland, the
Commission shall:
(1) develop objective criteria for determining which fields
of law or law practice should be recognized as specialties for
purposes of Rule 7.4 of the Maryland Lawyers Rules of
Professional Conduct, and
(2) applying those criteria, recommend to the Court of
Appeals, from time to time, which fields of law or law practice
should be recognized as specialties for those purposes.
(b)
Development of Criteria
In developing its criteria, the Commission shall consider:
-77-
-78-
-79-
(a) Generally
Upon or in anticipation of the approval of specialties by
the Court of Appeals pursuant to Rule 16-409, and in conformance
with the requirements and procedures in this Rule, the Commission
may accredit entities the Commission finds qualified to certify
attorneys as specialists in the specialties approved by the
Court.
(b) Standards for Accreditation
In determining whether to accredit an entity as a
certifying entity, the Commission shall be guided by the
following:
(1) the nature, structure, governance, and financial
integrity of the entity, including:
(A) whether the entity is a for-profit or not-for-profit
organization; and
(B) the composition of the governing board and the
principal officers of the entity, including whether and to what
extent the board and the officers consist of attorneys who
themselves have demonstrated expertise or extensive practice in
-80-
the specialty;
(2) whether the entity is accredited as a certifying entity
in the particular specialty by the supreme court or other
judicial authority of any state, by the American Bar Association,
or by any other national or international organization that the
Commission finds credible and knowledgeable in the relevant field
of law or law practice;
(3) whether the entity has applied for accreditation by any
authority or organization mentioned in subsection (b)(2) of this
Rule and been denied accreditation;
(4) any evaluations of the entity by or on behalf of any
authority that has accredited the entity as a certifying entity.
(5) the procedures, criteria, and requirements used by the
entity in processing and deciding upon applications by attorneys
for certification and the approximate cost of processing
applications, with a view to assuring that (A) only attorneys who
are truly proficient and have demonstrated expertise in the
particular specialty will be certified by the entity, and (B) the
process will not be so rigorous or expensive as to preclude
attorneys who are truly qualified from being certified;
(6) whether the criteria for initial and renewed
certification will include a requirement and process for assuring
that the attorney is not merely knowledgeable generally in the
specialty but is and will remain knowledgeable in all aspects of
Maryland law and procedure applicable to the specialty;
Committee note:
-81-
-82-
Persons desiring to be
heard shall notify the Clerk of the Court at least two days
before the hearing.
presentations.
(3) Action by Court
Proposed accreditations submitted by the Commission are
not subject to approval by the Court, but the Court may reject a
proposed accreditation or direct that the Commission give further
consideration to it.
-83-