The State Bar seeks public comment on amendments to the Rules of Procedure to allow waivers of filing fees and to allow waivers of the requirement to pay transcript preparation costs for eligible litigants in the State Bar Court.
Deadline: July 18, 2025, 11:59 p.m. (45 days)
Comments should be submitted using the online Public Comment Form. The online form allows you to input your comments directly and can also be used to upload your comment letter and/or other attachments.
Although there are no filing fees in most types of proceedings in the State Bar Court (SBC), litigants who seek to file a petition for reinstatement, an appeal of an adverse determination of moral character, or an appeal of a denial, suspension, or revocation of a legal specialization certification must pay the applicable filing fee. In addition, a litigant who seeks review of a Hearing Department decision must order a trial transcript and pay the transcript preparation cost. No waivers of these fees or costs is allowed. For low-income litigants, the filing fees and transcript costs may pose an insurmountable barrier to their ability to pursue their cases.
Proposed new rule 5.32 would create a procedure for low-income litigants to apply for a waiver of any applicable filing fee, with corresponding changes made in other provisions that refer to the required filing fees. Further changes in the Rules of Procedure are proposed to allow for a waiver of the transcript preparation costs when a request for review is filed. If the changes in the Rules of Procedure regarding transcript cost waivers are adopted, the Rules of Practice of the State Bar Court will be amended to create a procedure for litigants to apply for a waiver of the transcript costs.
Litigants in some types of State Bar Court actions, including reinstatement cases and moral character proceedings, must pay a filing fee to file the initial pleading in the action. In addition, a State Bar Court litigant who wishes to seek review of a Hearing Department decision must order a trial transcript and pay the transcript preparation cost. There are no exceptions allowed to the requirements to pay these fees and costs. For low-income litigants, the filing fees and transcript costs may pose an insurmountable barrier to their ability to pursue their cases. This creates a system where a lower-income person may not be able to petition for reinstatement, seek State Bar Court review of an adverse moral character determination, or challenge a State Bar Court Hearing Department decision regardless of the merits of that person’s case. Proposed new rule 5.32 provides that an applicant who is found to meet the eligibility criteria for fee scaling under rule 2.15 (currently, having a gross annual individual income below $60,478.35) will be eligible for a filing fee waiver. Rule 5.32 creates a procedure for submission of an application for a filing fee waiver, based on the fee waiver procedures for Superior Court litigants. The proposed amendments also make changes in existing rules that refer to filing fee requirements to make clear that an applicant can apply for a waiver of the fee.
The existing language of rule 5.151 of the Rules of Procedure sets out the requirements for filing a request for review of an SBC Hearing Department decision, including that the party seeking review must submit an order for a trial transcript and payment for the transcript. Proposed amendments to rule 5.151 would allow a party to file a request for review without paying for the transcript, by instead filing an application to have those costs waived. Additional changes are proposed in the Rules of Procedure to recognize that transcript preparation costs may be waived in some cases. Because the existing procedural requirements regarding payment of transcript preparation costs are set out in the Rules of Practice of the State Bar Court, if the proposed changes to the Rules of Procedure are adopted, the Rules of Practice will also need to be amended to create eligibility criteria and application procedures for waivers of transcript preparation cost waivers. These criteria and application procedures will generally be the same as the criteria and procedures for filing fee waivers.
The State Bar Court estimates that the loss of revenue from the waiver of filing fees in eligible reinstatement cases and moral character proceedings will be less than $10,000 each year. The State Bar Court estimates that the cost to pay for trial transcript preparation for all cases where the litigant is granted a waiver will be between $20,000 and $50,000 each year, based on current rates charged by the service that prepares the transcripts.
Board of Trustees, sitting as the Regulation and Discipline Committee
July 18, 2025, 11:59 p.m.
Proposed Program to Allow Waivers of Filing Fees and Waivers of Transcript Costs in State Bar Court