Code of Alabama - Title 34: Professions and Businesses - Chapter 3 - Attorney-at-law

• Article 1 General Provisions.
• Section 34-3-1 Unlawful practice of law
  If any person shall, without having become duly licensed to practice, or whose license to practice shall have expired either by disbarment, failure to pay...
• Section 34-3-2 Board of Examiners
  The Board of Commissioners of the State Bar shall have the following powers and authority in addition to the powers and authority heretofore conferred upon...
• Section 34-3-2.1 Certified graduates of certain law schools authorized to take bar exam
  So long as the Birmingham School of Law, Miles College School of Law, and Jones School of Law maintain a four-year curriculum of law courses...
• Section 34-3-3 Admission fee paid by applicants
  Applicants for admission to the bar not required by law to take an examination shall pay a fee to be set by the Board of...
• Section 34-3-4 Disposition of admission and license fees
  All fees and licenses paid by applicants for admission as provided in this chapter and attorneys' annual license fee levied by the revenue law shall...
• Section 34-3-5 Effect of default in license payment
  No attorney who is in default in the payment of such annual license shall be recognized in the courts of Alabama or in the voting...
• Section 34-3-6 Who may practice as attorneys
  (a) Only such persons as are regularly licensed have authority to practice law. (b) For the purposes of this chapter, the practice of law is...
• Section 34-3-7 Penalty for practicing law without license or conspiring, aiding, or abetting in violation
  Any person, firm or corporation who is not a regularly licensed attorney who does an act defined in this article to be an act of...
• Section 34-3-8 Clerk or employee practicing before court
  Any person who practices law in any court in which he is clerk, deputy clerk or regularly employed to perform any of the ministerial duties...
• Section 34-3-9 Certain ministerial officers prohibited from practicing law
  Any sheriff, coroner, or deputy thereof, or constable who practices law in any court of this state must, on conviction, be fined not less than
• Section 34-3-10 Practicing law by register or clerk of circuit court
  Any register or clerk of circuit court, who practices law in the court of which he is clerk or register, or any partner of such...
• Section 34-3-11 Judges not to practice law
  Any judge of a court of record in this state who practices law in any of the courts of this state, or of the United...
• Section 34-3-12 Partner of district attorney prohibited from defending in certain cases
  Any attorney-at-law who is the law partner of any district attorney in this state, who defends a criminal case of any kind, character or description...
• Section 34-3-13 Officers with authority to take complaints and issue warrants practicing as attorneys in their own court
  Any officer who has the power or authority to take complaints and issue warrants of arrest, and who acts as an attorney in any such...
• Section 34-3-14 Officers and deputies disqualified from practicing
  The judge of any court of record, the sheriff or deputy of the sheriff must not practice law; the clerk of the circuit court or...
• Section 34-3-15 Attorney to take oath
  Every attorney-at-law before being permitted to practice shall take the following oath or affirmation before an officer authorized to administer oaths: "I do solemnly swear...
• Section 34-3-16 Annual meeting of the State Bar and Board of Commissioners; election of officers and duties thereof
  (a) Annual meeting. There shall be an annual meeting of the lawyers of Alabama, open to all members of the State Bar in good standing,...
• Section 34-3-17 Qualified lawyers holding public office authorized to become members of Alabama Bar Association
  All lawyers who are qualified to practice law in Alabama and who are not engaged in active practice because they are holding a state or...
• Section 34-3-18 Lawyers not engaged in active practice authorized to become members of Alabama Bar Association
  All lawyers who are qualified to practice law in Alabama and who are not engaged in active practice may become members of the Alabama Bar...
• Section 34-3-19 Any person may manage his own case
  The provisions of this article shall not be construed to prevent any person from conducting or managing his or her own case in any court...
• Section 34-3-20 Duties of attorneys
  It is the duty of attorneys: (1) To support the Constitution and laws of this state and of the United States. (2) To maintain the...
• Section 34-3-21 Authority of attorneys in case - Generally
  An attorney has authority to bind his or her client, in any action or proceeding, by any agreement in relation to such case, made in...
• Section 34-3-22 Authority of attorneys in case - Proceedings on appearance without authority
  If it is alleged by a party for whom an attorney appears that he or she does so without authority, the court may at any...
• Section 34-3-23 Authority of attorneys in case - Proof
  The court or judge may, on motion of either party and on being shown reasonable grounds therefor, require the attorney for the adverse party, or...
• Section 34-3-24 Encouraging litigation; champerty - Generally
  Any attorney-at-law, either before or after action brought, who gives, offers, or promises to give a valuable consideration to another person as an inducement to...
• Section 34-3-25 Encouraging litigation; champerty - Receiving compensation from attorney
  Any person who shall, before or after an action is brought, receive or agree to receive from any attorney-at-law, firm or partnership of attorneys compensation...
• Article 2 Board of Commissioners.
• Section 34-3-40 Established; composition; terms of office
  (a) The governing body of Alabama State Bar shall be the Board of Commissioners composed of at least one member from each judicial circuit; provided...
• Section 34-3-41 Election of members; selection of at-large members
  (a) The members of the Board of Commissioners for each judicial circuit shall be elected by the members of the State Bar who maintain their...
• Section 34-3-42 Nominations
  Nomination to the office of commissioner shall be by written petition of any five or more members of the bar in good standing who maintain...
• Section 34-3-43 Powers generally
  (a) The Board of Commissioners shall have power: (1) To determine, by rules, the qualifications and requirements for admission to the practice of law; (2)...
• Section 34-3-44 Disbursements; compensation
  For the purpose of carrying out the objectives of this chapter and for the exercise of the powers herein granted, the board shall have power...
• Article 3 Fees and Liens.
• Section 34-3-60 Fees paid as part of costs in partition and trust proceedings
  In all actions and proceedings in the probate courts and circuit courts and other courts of like jurisdiction, where there is involved the administration of...
• Section 34-3-61 Liens
  (a) Attorneys-at-law shall have a lien on all papers and money of their clients in their possession for services rendered to them, in reference thereto,...
• Section 34-3-62 Procedure when amount of compensation disputed
  Whenever any disagreement or controversy arises between an attorney-at-law and any other person respecting the amount of the compensation to which he or she is...
• Article 4 Disciplinary Proceedings.
• Section 34-3-80
  The Board of Commissioners shall establish rules governing procedure in cases involving alleged professional misconduct of members of the State Bar. The Grievance Committee of...
• Section 34-3-81 Approval by court of rules and regulations
  The rules and regulations adopted by the Board of Commissioners relative to disbarment shall not be effective until approved by the Supreme Court.
• Section 34-3-82 Power of subpoena
  In the investigation of charges of professional misconduct, the board and any committee appointed by it for this purpose shall have power to summon and...
• Section 34-3-83 Rights of accused member
  Any member of the bar complained of shall have notice and opportunity to defend by the introduction of evidence and the examination of witnesses called...
• Section 34-3-84 Payment of witnesses
  The board shall by rules provided for such purpose and out of the funds herein provided for arrange for the payment of reasonable costs for...
• Section 34-3-85 Record of proceedings
  A complete record of the proceedings and evidence taken by the board, committee, or commissioner shall be made and preserved by the board, but it...
• Section 34-3-86 Causes of removal of attorney
  An attorney must be removed for the following causes by the circuit court: (1) Upon his or her being convicted of a felony other than...
• Section 34-3-87 Other causes of removal or suspension
  For the following causes an attorney may be removed or suspended by the circuit court: (1) Upon its being shown, to the satisfaction of the...
• Section 34-3-88 Existing causes of removal or suspension and laws relating thereto cumulative
  The causes of removal or suspension of attorneys and methods of proceeding in reference to such removal or suspension are hereby declared to be cumulative...
• Section 34-3-89 Who may initiate proceedings
  The proceedings to remove or suspend an attorney, as provided for in Sections 34-3-86 and 34-3-87, may be taken by the court on its own...
• Article 5 State Bar Building Foundation.
• Section 34-3-100 Legislative findings and intent
  The Legislature hereby finds and declares that it is necessary and desirable, in the best interests of the state, that the Alabama State Bar have...
• Section 34-3-101 Application for incorporation
  The president, the first vice-president, and the secretary of the Alabama State Bar may become a corporation by presenting to the Secretary of the State...
• Section 34-3-102 Certificate of incorporation
  When the application has been made, filed, and recorded as herein provided, the applicants shall constitute a corporation under the name proposed in the application,...
• Section 34-3-103 Board of trustees and officers
  The foundation shall be governed by a board of trustees consisting of the president, the first vice-president, and the members of the Board of Commissioners...
• Section 34-3-104 Powers of foundation
  The foundation shall have the following powers: (1) To have succession by its corporate name in perpetuity; (2) To sue and be sued and to...
• Section 34-3-105 Exemptions from taxation
  All properties of the foundation, the income therefrom, and all other income of the foundation shall forever be exempt from any form of taxation in...
• Section 34-3-106 Parcel of land to be conveyed by state to foundation
  As promptly as practicable after the incorporation of the foundation, the Governor shall execute and deliver to the foundation an appropriate deed conveying to the...
• Section 34-3-107 Disbursement of appropriations to State Bar for construction of buildings
  To enable the foundation to construct a building or buildings suitable for the uses described in Section 34-3-100, the Board of Commissioners of the Alabama...
• Section 34-3-108 Nonprofit and public nature of foundation
  It is the intention of this article that the foundation be a nonprofit public corporation. No part of the net earnings of the foundation shall...

Last modified: May 3, 2021