Doing legal business in the District of Columbia

Regulation of the legal profession

The District of Columbia Court of Appeals is the official regulator of the legal profession in Washington DC.

It has appointed the Board on Professional Responsibility to serve as its disciplinary arm.

The District of Columbia Bar is a mandatory body with over 100,000 members. It provides the oversight structure necessary to maintain the profession’s ethical standards and Rules of Professional Conduct.

Temporary practice

UK lawyers can practise on a temporary basis in Washington DC without having to register as foreign legal consultants (FLCs).

According to the DC Court of Appeal’s rules:

“a person may provide legal services in the District of Columbia on an incidental and temporary basis if the person is authorised to practise law and in good standing in another state or territory or authorised to practise law in a foreign country, is not disbarred or suspended for disciplinary reasons, and has not resigned with charges pending in any jurisdiction or court.”

Foreign legal consultant (FLC) status

UK lawyers seeking to practise in Washington DC can register as a special legal consultant (the equivalent of a FLC) if they:

• have been admitted to practise in a foreign country, and are in good standing as an attorney or counsellor at law in that foreign country
• possess the good moral character and general fitness required
• intend to practise as a special legal consultant in the District of Columbia and to maintain an office in the District of Columbia, and
• are at least 26 years of age

Find out more about registering as a special legal consultant.

Licensed foreign lawyers can employ, be employed by and partner with a local lawyer.

This is explicitly mentioned in the USA’s World Trade Organisation commitments on legal services.

Requalification

Washington DC has adopted the Uniform Bar Examination (UBE).

UK lawyers seeking to take the bar exam in the District of Columbia need to:

• hold a law degree, and
• complete at least 26 credit hours of study in a law school approved by the American Bar Association (ABA)

The requirement to complete additional hours of study does not apply to applicants who graduate from an ABA-approved law school in the US. It only applies to graduates of foreign law schools.

All 26 credit hours must be earned in courses of study which are substantially concentrated on a single subject tested on the UBE.

You can earn the hours of study through remote instruction, as long as it meets the definition of “distance education course” set out in the ABA Standards and Rules of Procedure for Approval of Law Schools.

Applicants seeking to be admitted in Washington DC must also complete the Multistate Professional Responsibility Examination (MPRE) administered by the National Conference of Bar Examiners.

Learn more about admission requirements.

Establishing a law firm

The District of Columbia is one of the very few jurisdictions in the US that allows alternative business structures. This includes joint ownership of a law firm between lawyers and non-lawyers.

There are no separate requirements for foreign law firms. A foreign lawyer licensed as a special legal consultant is permitted to open an office.

Licensed foreign lawyers can employ, be employed by and partner with a local lawyer.

There are a number of foreign law firms established in DC. These are mostly English. Other English firms have a presence through the US arms of their Swiss vereins.