D.P.R. Loc. Civ. R. 83A

(a) Eligibility for Admission.

Any attorney who is of good personal and professional character, and who is an active

member in good standing of, and eligible to practice before, the bar of the highest court of a state,

the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Territory of Guam, the

Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, or the Virgin Islands of the United States, and

who is not then disbarred from, or under a period of suspension, b y any court of record in

the United States, is eligible for admission to the bar of this court provided the attorney

also complies with one of the following provisions:

(1) Has received a satisfactory score on the bar examination as determined by

the District Bar Examination Committee; or,

(2) has served, for a period of one year, as a United States district judge,

magistrate judge, bankruptcy judge, clerk, chief deputy clerk, or law clerk

in this court, or as the United States attorney, an assistant United States

attorney, a special assistant United States attorney, the federal public

defender, an assistant federal public defender, or a research and writing

specialist, who work for the Office of the Federal Public Defender in this

district; or,

(3) has served, for a period of five (5) years, as a Supreme Court Justice, a

Court of Appeals Judge, or a Judge of the Court of First Instance in the

General Court of Justice of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico; or,

(4) has served on a continuous basis for at least ten (10) years as a full-time

tenured law professor at a law school duly accredited by the American Bar

Association and any other pertinent authority [provided that both at the

time of his or her graduation from law school and the start of his or her

tenure no district examination was administered in this district.]

(b) Committee on Admissions.

A Committee on Admissions composed of three (3) members in good standing of the bar

of this court shall be named by the a c t i v e d i s t r i c t judges to aid in the screening

and evaluation of the applications for admission to the bar of this court. The members shall be

appointed for terms of three (3) years, except that initial appointments shall be for one, two and

three years, so that the term of three members shall expire each year and membership shall rotate

with continuity. Upon its expiration an appointment may be renewed or filled by the court, as

appropriate, provided that the same member does not serve continuously for more than two

(2) regular terms. The court shall designate one member to chair the committee.

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(c) Procedure for Admission.

(1) Petition. Each applicant for admission to the bar of this court shall file a

sworn written petition setting forth his or her: residential, office, and

electronic addresses, residential and office telephone and facsimile

numbers; email addresses; courts to which admitted to practice; legal

training and experience; proficiency in written and oral English; and the

availability to work pro bono.

The petition shall be filed with the clerk accompanied by the following

documents: certificate of admission and good standing from the clerks of

all courts to which applicant is admitted to practice; certificate of good

conduct issued by the police department where applicant resides; an

itemized written statement detailing the nature, status, and disposition of

any criminal prosecution or conviction; evidence of satisfaction of one of

the eligibility criteria set forth in subsection (a) above, including evidence

of receipt of a satisfactory score in the District Bar Examination, if

applicable; three (3) personal references, of which two (2) must be by

members in good standing of the bar of this court. The date of issuance of

the documents must not exceed three (3) months from the date of the

Petition.

(2) Referral for Report. Upon filing of the petition and accompanying

documents, the clerk shall refer the matter to the Committee on Admissions.

The committee shall consider the petition and render a report to the court

within thirty (30) days of its receipt, or such additional period of time as the

court may determine upon request by the committee.

If the Committee on Admissions finds that it has grounds to render an

unfavorable report, it shall notify the applicant in writing of the nature of

the evidence. The applicant may rebut this evidence within the reasonable

time established by the committee. The committee shall, upon reviewing

all the evidence, render its report to the court. If the report is unfavorable,

the committee shall state the bases for its findings.

(3) Determinations on Admissions. Upon receipt of the report from the

Committee on Admissions, the court shall convene to consider and pass upon

the application. Determinations on petitions for admission will be made by

a majority vote of the active district judges of this court. Whenever a

majority of the judges cannot agree as to the admission of an applicant, the

decision shall be made by the c hief j udge. The clerk shall notify each

applicant in writing of the court’s decision.

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(4) Hearing. The court may deny any petition for admission, regardless of the

nature of the report, provided that the applicant is served with notice of the

grounds for the denial and afforded an opportunity to be heard.

(5) Certificate of Admission. Upon admission to the bar of this court and

payment of the applicable admissions fee, the clerk shall issue a certificate

of admission after the applicant has taken and subscribed the following oath

or affirmation before this court:

I do solemnly swear (affirm) that I will demean myself as an

attorney and counselor of this Court uprightly and according to

law; and that I will support and defend the Constitution of the

United States. So help me God.

The applicant shall sign the roll of attorneys of this court, shall be assigned

a bar member number by the clerk, and shall thenceforth be a member of

the bar of this court.

(d) Practice Before this court; Continuing Membership; Practice Prohibited

While on Inactive Status.

(1) Except as otherwise provided by these rules, only members of the bar of

this court shall practice in this court. Admission to and continuing

membership in the bar of this court is limited to attorneys who are of good

moral character and are active members in good standing of the bar of the

highest court of any state, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of

Puerto Rico, the Territory of Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern

Mariana Islands, or the Virgin Islands of the United States. Any attorney

previously admitted to the bar of this court who no longer is in good

standing of the bar of the highest court of any state, the District of

Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Territory of Guam, the

Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, or the Virgin Islands of

the United States, may not practice before this court.

(2) Inactive Status. An attorney admitted to and in good standing with this

court may request to be placed on “Inactive Status” by filing a written

request to the clerk. While on “Inactive Status”, an attorney will not accrue

annual bar membership renewal fees, will not have access to CM/ECF, will

not be eligible for appointments in criminal cases and pro bono cases under

Local Civil Rule 83L, and will not be eligible to participate in court

sponsored Continuing Legal Education seminars. To return to Active

Status, a written request should be filed with the clerk and renewal fees

paid for the year in which the request is made.

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(3) Bar Membership Renewal Fees: To remain in good standing with this

court, attorneys must pay bar membership renewal fees on or before

October 1st of each year. All attorneys who fail to pay the bar membership

renewal fees will not be considered to be in good standing. These attorneys

will not have access to CM/ECF, will not be eligible for appointments in

criminal cases and pro bono cases under Local Civil Rule 83L, and will not

be eligible to participate in court sponsored Continuing Legal Education

seminars

(e) Attorneys for the United States and Federal Public Defenders.

(1) Eligibility to Practice. An attorney who is not eligible for admission under

subsection (a) of this rule, but who is a member in good standing of, and eligible to practice

before, the bar of any United States court or of the highest court of any state, the District

of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Territory of Guam, the

Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, or the Virgin Islands of the United

States, and who is of good moral character and is not subject to pending disciplinary

proceedings as a member of the bar in any jurisdiction, may appear and practice in this

court in any matter in which the attorney is employed or retained by the United States or

its agencies or the office of federal public defender.

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(2) Temporary Permission. Attorneys permitted to practice in this court pursuant

to subsection (1)(e) are subject to the jurisdiction of the court with respect to their conduct

to the same extent as members of the bar of this court, and the court may at any time revoke

the permission for good cause without a hearing. Once the attorney ceases to be employed

or retained by the United States, any of its agencies, or the Office of the Federal Public

Defender, he or she shall cease to practice in this court in that official capacity. U n l es

s al r e a d y ad m i t t ed t o p r a c t i ce b ef o r e t h i s c o u r t, the attorney shall

then be required to apply for admission to the bar of this court pursuant to subsection (a)

above, in order to appear and practice in this court.

(3) Application. Attorneys for the United States or employed as federal public

defenders requesting permission to appear and practice before this court pursuant to this

rule, shall file a motion to appear and practice with the clerk addressing the required

eligibility standards. The motion shall be signed by the attorney applicant and the

authorized representative of the employing or retaining instrumentality or agency of the

United States. The clerk shall, within fourteen days from the filing of the motion, enter an

order denying or granting permission to appear and practice, or requesting additional

information, as appropriate.

(4) Special Roll of Attorneys. Upon authorization by the clerk, the attorney

shall sign the specially-designated roll of attorneys of this court, whereupon he or she

shall be assigned an appearance number.

(5) Admission Fee not Applicable. Although permission to appear and practice

before this court pursuant to this rule subjects attorneys to the jurisdiction of the court

with respect to their conduct to the same extent as members of the bar of this court, the

permission is not considered an admission to the bar of this court. Therefore, no

admission fee shall be taxed.

(f) Pro Hac Vice.

An attorney who does not reside in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and

who is authorized to practice law before the bar of any United States court or of the

highest court of any state, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto

Rico, the Territory of Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands or

the Virgin Islands of the United States, may apply for permission to appear as attorney

of record in a particular case or proceeding. The movant shall:

(1) designate a member of the bar of this court as local counsel;

(2) state the court(s) in which the movant is admitted to practice law;

(3) attest that the movant is not currently suspended from practicing law

before any court or jurisdiction;

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(4) state if any complaint for unethical misconduct, disciplinary proceeding, or

criminal charges involving the movant are currently pending before any

court or jurisdiction; and,

(5) pay the appropriate fee.

The pro hac vice application shall be presented to the court in the form available at the

clerk’s office or on the court’s web site (www.prd.uscourts.gov), together with the prescribed

admission fee. The court will not refund the fee if the motion is denied.

The court may at any time revoke pro hac vice admission for good cause without a

hearing. An attorney permitted to practice before this court pro hac vice in a particular action

shall at all times remain associated in the action with a member of the bar of this court. All process,

notices, and other papers shall be served on the attorney admitted pro hac vice and on the member

of the bar of this court. Both attorneys shall sign all filings submitted to the Court. The attendance

of the member of the bar of this court is required at all proceedings, unless excused by the court.

(g) Disciplinary Jurisdiction.

Whenever an attorney applies to be admitted or is admitted as a member of the bar of this

court or pro hac vice for purposes of a particular proceeding, the attorney shall be deemed to have

conferred disciplinary jurisdiction upon this court for any alleged misconduct of that attorney

arising in the course of, or in the preparation for, such proceeding.

(h) Other Persons.

A person who is not a member of the bar of this court, and who is not otherwise eligible

for admission pursuant to these rules, will only be allowed to appear and practice before the court

pro se, that is, on his or her own behalf. That representation may not be delegated to any other

person, including a spouse, parent or other relative, or to any other party on the same side who is

not represented by an attorney. A non-attorney guardian for a minor or an incompetent person who

is not an attorney must be represented by counsel.

Any person appearing pro se will be required to comply with these local rules and with

the federal rules of evidence and procedure. Pro se litigants are expected to compose their

pleadings substantially to the standards set forth in the Federal Rules of Procedure and these rules,

and to allege sufficient facts to support a cognizable legal claim. Although the court may be more

lenient with pro se litigants, unrepresented parties are not immune from sanctions.

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