Ethics Hotline & Opinions

Ethics Docket No. 1995-28

MARYLAND STATE BAR ASSOCIATION, INC.

COMMITTEE ON ETHICS

ETHICS DOCKET NO. 1995-28

Unauthorized practice of law; attorney not a member of Maryland Bar practicing trademark law in Maryland

 

You state that you are n ot a member of the Maryland Bar, but you are a member of the District of Columbia and Ohio Bars. Your inquiry raises the question of whether it would violate the Maryland Rule of Professional Conduct for you to prepare and file federal trademark applications while residing in the State of Maryland.

It is important to note at the outset that where you live is not the decisive issue in determining whether you are practicing law in Maryland. If your activities constitute the practice of law in this State, where you reside is irrelevant; you cannot practice law without a license in Maryland regardless of your place of residence.

Specifically, Rule 5.5(a) states that a person may not practice law in a jurisdiction where doing so violates the regulation of the legal profession in that jurisdiction. Under Maryland law, one may not practice law in Maryland unless that person is licensed to do so by the Maryland Court of Appeals. See Md. Bus. Occ. & Prof. Code Ann. sec. 10-206(a) (1993 Cum. Supp.) (""Code""). The Committee also refers you to Section 10-101 (h) of the Code which may provide additional guidance as to what constitutes the practice of law. See also Md. R. 1-312(b) and Md. Code Art. 10, secs. 1, 26a and 32(a) (1987 Repl. Vol.)

The particular question you raise is whether your delineated activities constitute the practice of law in Maryland. That question is a legal one and the Committee declines to offer opinions on legal questions. The Committee refers you to Kennedy v. Bar Assn. of Montgomery County, 316 Md. at pp 662-63, which answers your question directly. should the activities be determined to comprise the practice of law in Maryland, you cannot perform them without being a member of the Maryland Bar. On this issue, the Committee refers you to Rule 8.5(a). The Committee also refers you to our prior Opinion No. 94-13.

 

DISCLAIMER: Opinions of the Maryland State Bar Association (MSBA) Ethics Committee are an uncompensated service of the MSBA. This Committee’s opinions are not binding on the Maryland Court of Appeals, Maryland Attorney Grievance Commission, MSBA or this Committee. The reader is advised that subsequent judicial opinions, revisions to the rules of professional conduct, and future opinions of this Committee may render the Opinions stated herein outdated. As such, the Committee’s opinions are advisory only and neither the Committee nor the MSBA assumes any liability whatsoever with respect thereto. Accordingly, reliance upon the opinions of this Committee is solely at the risk of the user.