Ind. Sup. Ct. Order Amending Rules: order-rules-2025-0430-admission-discipline

In the

Indiana Supreme Court

Cause No. 25S-MS-5

Order Amending Admission and Discipline Rules

Under the authority vested in this Court to provide by rule for the procedure employed in

all courts of this state and this Court’s inherent authority to supervise the administration of all

courts of this state, the Indiana Rules for the Admission to the Bar and the Discipline of

Attorneys are AMENDED as follows (deletions shown by striking and new text shown by

underlining):

Rules for the Admission to the Bar and the Discipline of Attorneys

* * *

Rule 6.1. Temporary License

Section 1. Temporary License. A person who has been admitted to practice law in the highest court

of law in any other state (as defined in Rule 6, section 1), and who is in good standing and has no

pending disciplinary proceedings in each state of admission, may be granted a temporary license to

practice law in Indiana if the person has applied for admission to the Indiana bar, either on

examination, transferred Uniform Bar Examination score, or on foreign license admission without

examination under Rule 6, and meets one of the following qualifications:

(a) The person is employed as a full-time faculty member at an ABA-accredited law school in

Indiana and is supervising law students in a clinical program of that law school; or

(b) The person is employed by a legal services organization or public defender office that

provides legal assistance to persons of limited means, free of charge; or

(c) The person offers pro bono services to persons of limited means, free of charge, through a

legal services organization or public defender office; or

(d) The person is employed full-time as an attorney for the Indiana Department of Child

Services providing litigation services in child welfare cases; or

(e) The person is employed full-time as a deputy prosecutor.

* * *

Rule 13. Educational Requirements for Admission by Examination

* * *

Section 4. Waiver of Educational Qualification. The Board may in its discretion waive the

requirement in Section 1(a) for an applicant who on the date of the bar examination for which they

are seeking a waiver (1) has or will have graduated from a law school located in the United States

that is not approved by the ABA, was or will be eligible upon graduation from that law school to

take the bar examination of another state, and the Board finds is qualified by reason of education or

experience to take the Indiana bar examination; or (2) has or will have completed legal education in

a jurisdiction outside the United States, has or will have obtained a graduate degree from an ABA-

approved law school in a program based on American law, and the Board finds is qualified by

reason of education or experience to take the Indiana bar examination.

Applicants seeking a waiver under this section must petition the Board by letter and provide the

Board with the following materials:

(a) Official transcripts from each undergraduate college or university the applicant attended,

reflecting all courses taken, the grade for each course, the number of semester hours of

credit earned, and the degree(s) awarded, if any.

(b) Official transcripts from each law school the applicant attended, reflecting all courses

taken, the grade for each course, the number of semester hours of credit earned, and the

degree(s) awarded, if any.

(c) A narrative statement that includes a description of the applicant’s legal education and

training, a description of the applicant’s work history, and reasons why the applicant

believes a waiver is warranted.

(d) Bar examination results—number of graduates from the applicant’s law school(s) who

passed/failed, classified by state administering the exam, for the previous three years.

(e) A statement of whether the applicant has applied to take the bar exam in any other

jurisdiction and the result of that request, and the result of any bar examination taken by

the applicant.

(f) For applicants who have completed legal education outside the United States, a

description of that country’s legal system, including, but not limited to, whether the

English common law substantially forms the basis of that country’s jurisprudence and

whether English is the language of instruction and practice in the courts of that

jurisdiction.

(g) Any other documentation, material, or information the applicant believes is relevant to

establish the applicant is qualified by reason of education or experience to take the

Indiana bar examination.

Any document submitted to the Board that is not in the English language must be translated into

English. The Board may request additional information or material as it deems appropriate, and no

material submitted to the Board will be returned to the applicant. The Board should grant a waiver

when doing so would be in the public interest after balancing all relevant factors

including the applicant’s educational history and achievement, work history and achievement, bar

exam results from other jurisdictions, desire to practice law in Indiana, and familiarity with the

American legal system. The Board’s decision is subject to final approval by the Court.

These amendments are effective on May 15, 2025.

Done at Indianapolis, Indiana, on _________________

4/30/2025.

Loretta H. Rush

Chief Justice of Indiana

All Justices concur.