Cracks in the Profession\u27s Monopoly Armor

This article examines the legal profession’s long-held monopoly in the nation’s legal services market in the context of two recent developments. The first development concerns the Conference of Chief Justices’ (CCJ) recent adoption of Resolution 15, “Encouraging Adoption of Rules Regarding Admission of Attorneys Who Are Dependents of Service Members.” Resolution 15 urges state bar authorities to develop and implement rules permitting admission without examination of lawyers who are military dependents. The CCJ’s rule promotes competition by facilitating the movement of lawyers from one geographic market to another. The second development is Washington Supreme Court’s new Admission to Practice Rule (APR) 28, titled “Limited Practice Rule for Limited License Legal Technicians” (LLLT). This rule allows licensed legal technicians (i.e., non-lawyers) to provide limited legal services without the supervision of lawyers. LLLT advocates argue that the new rule will help address the nation’s access to justice crisis. This article concludes that both developments promise to promote competition in the legal services market and enhance consumer welfare