Florida Requirements for Nonlawyer
Assistance with Legal Forms
Individuals who assist others with the completion of immigration forms or other legal documents in the State of Florida must comply with specific requirements established by the Florida Supreme Court.
These rules are intended to protect the public by ensuring that nonlawyers do not provide legal advice or engage in the unauthorized practice of law. A person who is not licensed to practice law may provide only those services that are permitted under applicable law and must clearly disclose the limitations of his or her role.
The following information summarizes the disclosure requirements contained in Rule 10-2.2(c) of the Rules Governing the Investigation and Prosecution of the Unlicensed Practice of Law, as well as the definition of a paralegal contained in Rule 10-2.1(h) of the Rules Regulating The Florida Bar.
Anyone providing nonlawyer document preparation services in Florida should carefully review these requirements and ensure full compliance with all applicable laws and regulations.
These requirements are found in Rule 10-2.2(c) of the Rules Governing the Investigation and Prosecution of the Unlicensed Practice of Law.
Pursuant to Rule 10-2.2(c)(2), before a nonlawyer assists a person in the completion of a legal form, the nonlawyer must provide the person with a copy of a disclosure which contains the following provisions:
….(Name)….. told me that he/she is a non-lawyer and may not give legal
advice, cannot tell me what my rights or remedies are, cannot tell me how to testify in court, and cannot represent me in court.
Rule 10-2.1(h) of the Rules Regulating The Florida Bar defines a paralegal as a person who works under the supervision of a member of The Florida Bar, an out-of-state lawyer engaged in the authorized practice of law in Florida, or a foreign lawyer engaged in the authorized practice of law in Florida and who performs specifically delegated substantive legal work for which the supervising lawyer is responsible. Only persons who meet the definition may call themselves paralegals.
…..(Name)….. informed me that he/she is not a paralegal as defined by the rule and cannot call himself/herself a paralegal.
…..(Name)….. told me that he/she may only type the factual information
provided by me in writing into the blanks on the form.
Except for typing, …(Name)….. may not tell me what to put in the form and may not complete the form for me. However, if using a form approved by the Supreme Court of Florida, …..(Name)…. may ask me factual questions to fill in the blanks on the form and may also tell me how to file the form.
…..…..I can read English
…..…..I cannot read English but this notice was read to me by
…..(Name)….. in …..(Language)….., which I understand
Pursuant to Rule 10-2.2(c)(1), a nonlawyer must provide his/her name, business name, address, and telephone number on any form that the nonlawyer assists with, as follows: This form was completed with the assistance of:
…..(Name of Individual)…..
…..(Name of Business)…..
…..(Address)…..
…..(Telephone Number)…..
Pursuant to Rule 10-2.2(c)(3), a copy of the disclosure, signed by both the nonlawyer and the assisted person, must be given to the assisted person to retain, and the nonlawyer must keep a copy in the assisted person’s file, and the nonlawyer must retain copies for at least 6 years of all forms given to the assisted person.