Pro Bono Service by Magistrates, Prosecutors, Public Defenders, and Others Now Allowed

Sometimes it seems lawyers have a Latin phrase for everything: Self-represented litigants? They’re pro se. The thing speaks for itself? Res ipsa loquitur. Volunteer legal work? That’s pro bono to us. While attorneys have had an English word and Latin phrase to describe this last category, many public attorneys in North Carolina have historically had no mechanism for actually doing it. That’s because, until last July, G.S. 84-2 prohibited district attorneys, public defenders, and others from “engag[ing] in the private practice of law.” A person practices law when he or she provides legal services for another, regardless of whether the person is compensated for the work. See G.S. 84-2.1. Recent amendments to G.S. 84-2, however, allow some public attorneys who were previously disqualified to carry out certain types of pro bono legal work. G.S. 84-2, as amended by Section 26 of S.L. 2017-158 (NCAOC Omnibus Bill). G.S. 84-2 continues to generally prohibit the following persons from engaging in the private practice of law: Justices; Judges; Magistrates; Full-time district attorneys and full-time assistant district attorneys; Full-time public defenders and full-time assistant public defenders; Clerks, deputy clerks, and assistant clerks; Registers of deeds, deputy registers of deeds, and assistant registers of deeds; and Sheriffs and deputy sheriffs. A violation of G.S. 84-2 remains a Class 3 misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not less than $200. The statute now provides, however, that the private practice of law does not include the performance of pro bono legal services by (1) a lawyer; (2) other than [...]