The Bar’s Rules Committee last month voted 6-2 to oppose the proposal, which is slated to be considered Friday by the Bar’s Board of Governors at a meeting in Palm Beach.
Uthmeier, appointed as attorney general by Gov. Ron DeSantis in February, filed a petition with the Florida Supreme Court in May seeking to add a new chapter to rules regulating the Bar and asking the court for a waiver so consideration of the proposal could be expedited.
Uthmeier’s request for the rushed procedure said his office is experiencing “significant attorney staffing shortages, as are other agencies” that would be affected by the proposal. The court declined to issue the waiver.
The proposal would permit “certain state government lawyers” to acquire certification to practice law in Florida for a period of up to three years “while employed by or mentored by” a member of The Florida Bar. Public defenders’ offices are excluded from the plan.
The petition said Uthmeier’s “staffing needs are pronounced,” with 61 out of 451 attorney positions vacant.
“Qualified and experienced lawyers certified under this proposed amendment would provide the state, and the judiciary, with an obvious benefit. They would continue to uphold, and could even enhance, the high level of advocacy that the people of Florida deserve from their government. The Office of the Attorney General is particularly eager to find experienced, talented, and high-character attorneys from other states to perform excellent legal work on behalf of the state,” the petition said.
Current rules restrict out-of-state lawyers from engaging in general practice before Florida courts. Employees of the attorney general, state attorneys, public defenders and state offices that represent Death Row inmates can practice for up to a year if they are members of the bar in another state and have applied for admission to The Florida Bar, according to the petition. The time period could be extended if they have passed the exam and are awaiting character and fitness test results.
“That certification, however, is insufficient to address the issues surrounding government lawyers,” Uthmeier’s petition argued.
The change is intended to “attract and encourage experienced, well-qualified lawyers from around the country to serve in Florida government. In many cases, those lawyers forgo or leave much more lucrative employment in private practice to serve the public,” the petition said.
Moving to Florida and taking the Bar exam “is often a key impediment” to potential government lawyers, according to Uthmeier’s proposal.
“Merely being required to take another bar examination is frequently a deterrent to experienced, well-qualified lawyers who have practiced with distinction in other jurisdictions and now wish to serve as a lawyer in Florida’s government. Indeed, preparing and studying for the bar while employed as a government lawyer can seriously impede the attention that lawyer can devote to his or her critical governmental duties,” the petition said.
The easing of the requirements would only apply to lawyers allowed to represent “sophisticated government clients, not the private clients that the Bar’s practice regulations have historically existed to protect,” according to the petition, which said it is modeled after a rule that allows military spouses from other states to practice law in Florida for up to five years.
The Bar received two comments responding to the proposal. Both opposed it.
Paul Cherry, an assistant public defender in Sarasota County, said he was opposed to the exclusion of public defenders’ offices in the plan. Cherry recommended scrapping the entire petition.
“While we talk about a glut of lawyers and too many lawyers, we are opening the flood gates to expand our practicing Bar unnecessarily and only for the convenience of certain entities, maybe because they cannot find enough qualified people to populate their ranks,” Cherry wrote. “Instead of opening up the Bar to unqualified persons, these entities should try harder to find better people; maybe the Florida Bar as an entity should look at the bar examination to see why there are not more law school graduates passing the bar examination. In any event, the solution/answer is not to admit unqualified people to the Florida Bar under any circumstances.”
The Bar’s Board of Governors on Friday is expected to consider whether to submit a comment to the Supreme Court opposing the proposal, as recommended by the Rules Committee.
Uthmeier’s plan has sparked debate in Florida legal circles, echoing a fierce clash a decade ago over a proposal, known as “reciprocity,” aimed at allowing out-of-state lawyers to get licensed without taking the Bar exam. The Board of Governors in 2015 unanimously killed the plan, originally proposed by The Florida Bar’s then-president, Ray Abadin.
Florida has roughly 80,000 active, resident attorneys, ranking fourth in the nation in lawyer population, and the number of in-state lawyers continues to grow, according to a December American Bar Association report.
Jacksonville Beach attorney Jonathan McGowan submitted a comment raising several concerns, including the “usurpation” of the vetting process established by the Florida Board of Bar Examiners, which performs character and fitness evaluations of prospective lawyers.
“The process is vital to the legal field as it creates a basic level of inquiry as to an applicant’s suitability to practice as an attorney, and more importantly, screens out applicants that may cause harm to the profession,” McGowan wrote.
Opponents of the proposal also contended it would pose a separation-of-powers issue, because the Florida Constitution gives the Supreme Court the authority to admit lawyers to the state.
“This new chapter would give certification and hiring/firing ability (and) would grant/deny the ability to practice law in Florida solely in the hands of the executive branch,” minutes from a June 17 meeting of the Rules Committee said, summing up some of the objections to the plan.
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This article appears in Jul 16-22, 2025.