ISBA Holiday Office Hours
Proposed Iowa Rules of Professional Conduct
Client Security Claims Experience Necessitates Increase in Assessments Payable by Iowa Lawyers
Do you still need CLE hours before the end of the year?
2004-2005 Business Law Manual Available

ISBA Holiday Office Hours

The Iowa State Bar Association offices will be closed on December 23rd at 12:00 p.m. and will not re-open until Monday, December 27th.

The office will also be closed on December 31st in celebration of the New Year!

The ISBA staff would like to wish all members a happy, healthy and successful new year.

Proposed Iowa Rules of Professional Conduct

At the invitation of the Iowa Supreme Court, the members of the Iowa Rules of Professional Conduct Drafting Committee submitted comments on the proposed rules. The committee found most of the proposed rules regarding professional conduct to be worthy of praise. The committee did however, express concerns about the following matters in the proposed rules: (1) confidentiality, (2) fee matters in writing, (3) multi-jurisdictional practice, (4) managerial attorney responsibility and (5) undercover investigation of law violations.

To view the complete report of the committee see

http://www.iowabar.org/miscdocuments.nsf/2b85a4ea12f4bfac8625669d006e27ab/5b9e0e72e30e6ea886256f71006980e3/$FILE/Proposed Rule Comments.pdf

The deadline to submit written comments to the Iowa Supreme Court about the proposed rules is January 3, 2005.

Client Security Claims Experience Necessitates Increase in Assessments Payable by Iowa Lawyers

The Client Security Trust Fund (the “Fund”) of the Bar of Iowa requires a transfusion of additional operating funds in 2005 through an additional assessment payable by Iowa bar members. As of December 1, 2004 the unrestricted balance of the Fund had declined to well below $600,000. Based on court rule, an assessment is payable with the client security report form in early 2005 by all active Iowa lawyers, including those who previously have paid a total of $200.00 in assessments.

Under the rule, the additional assessment will be $100.00 for full-time Iowa private practitioners admitted during calendar year 2000 or earlier. Full-time Iowa private practitioners admitted during calendar years 2001, 2002 and 2003 will pay a $50.00 assessment. The assessment will be $25.00 for government lawyers, judges, corporate counsel or part-time practitioners. Lawyers admitted by examination during 2004 or 2005, and all lawyers in full time military service, are exempt from the assessment. Lawyers admitted on motion in 2004 or 2005 will pay an assessment of $50.00. The additional assessment is expected to produce an estimated $500,000 in revenue for the Fund, which should provide sufficient operating resources for several years, depending on future claims experience.

Additional information regarding the status of the Fund and this year’s assessment is available at the web page of the Client Security and Attorney Disciplinary Commission: http://www.judicial.state.ia.us/regs/csc.asp

Do you still need CLE hours before the end of the year?

Need an hour of Ethics? Here's your chance to obtain 4 hours of State CLE including 1 hour of Ethics!

NOW AVAILABLE ONLINE: Probate & Trust Law Online Seminar
This program has been approved for 4 hours of State CLE including 1 hour of Ethics!

This seminar is a videotape of the Probate & Trust Law Seminar that was held live on October 22, 2004. Presentations include Charitable Gift Planning, Inheritance/Estate/Trust Tax Returns (Iowa Department of Revenue); Alternatives to Probate and Ethical Dilemmas in Estate Planning.

Charitable Gift Planning focuses on the rules and regulations regarding the two common split-interest trust, the charitable remainder trusts and the charitable lead trusts and how to use them in financial and estate plans. Also included is the income tax deduction limits on charitable gifts.

Inheritance/Estate/Trust Tax Returns focuses on tips and suggestions to help your clients avoid delays in the processing of inheritance, estate and trust tax returns. Don't miss this discussion of how to take advantage of the 2004 inheritance tax statute changes affecting which estates need to file inheritance tax returns. Alternatives to Probate deals with probate alternatives, advantages and disadvantages as well as creditor rights in non-probate assets. Ethical Dilemmas for attorneys commonly arising in estate planning and in estate and trust administrations with recommendations on how to avoid, minimize and resolve these dilemmas will be reviewed.

To sign up and view this seminar click here or visit http://www.legalspan.com/iowa.

2004-2005 Business Law Manual Available

A two volume Business Law Manual with CD compiled by the experts is being offered for $125.00 plus shipping and handling. The volume will be ready for distribution in early January.

Table of Contents

• Revised Iowa Nonprofit Corporation Act
• Issues Affecting all Business Organizations - Electronic Commerce
• Iowa Economic development Programs and Services
• Former Employment and Present Competitive Restraint
• Iowa Competition Law
• Special Shareholder Concerns in the Closely held Corporation
• Overview of the 2002 Amendments to the Iowa Business Corporation
• Organizations Exempt from Taxation
• Entity Choice In Iowa Limited Liability Companies and Limited Liability Partnerships
• Employment Practice in Iowa
• Dissolution of Corporation Under the Iowa Business Corporation Act
• Confidentiality, Ethics and Business Client
• And much more