Readmission To The Practice Of Law In Georgia
An applicant for readmission following disbarment (or following termination from the State Bar for failing to pay dues for more than five years) should first contact the Membership Department of the State Bar of Georgia at 404-527-8700 to request a readmission letter be sent to the Office of Bar Admissions. As soon as that letter is received, the Office of Bar Admissions will contact the applicant with information on how to file an Application for Certification of Fitness pursuant to the provisions of Section 10 of Part A of the Rules Governing Admission to the Practice of Law in Georgia (“Rules”). Applicants whose membership with the State Bar has been administratively suspended (as opposed to those whose membership has been terminated) are not eligible for Readmission and must instead apply for Reinstatement. Information about Reinstatement can be found here.
Procedure for Disbarred Applicants
If the Board to Determine Fitness of Bar Applicants ( “Fitness Board”), after review and investigation, determines that a readmission applicant who has previously been disbarred should be certified, the Fitness Board will file a report and the complete record of its proceedings with the Clerk of the Supreme Court, with notice given to the applicant. The Supreme Court of Georgia makes the final determination regarding certification of fitness for applicants for readmission following disbarment. Because these extra steps involving the Supreme Court necessarily take additional time, the readmission process for previously disbarred applicants will take longer than the time generally needed to process other types of Fitness Applications. Once the applicant is certified as fit, he or she may apply to take the bar examination pursuant to Section 11 of Part A of the Rules.
Rehabilitation for Disbarred Applicants
An applicant for readmission following disbarment must establish to the Fitness Board’s and the Supreme Court’s satisfaction, by clear and convincing evidence, that he or she has been fully rehabilitated from the conduct causing disbarment. The Supreme Court of Georgia explained in In Re: Cason, 249 Ga. 806, 808 (1982), that “[f]or bar fitness purposes, rehabilitation is the reestablishment of the reputation of a person by his or her restoration to a useful and constructive place in society.” The Court provided the following guidance: “Positive action showing rehabilitation may be evidenced by such things as a person’s occupation, religion, or community service” Cason at 809.
An applicant for readmission following disbarment must submit documentary evidence of rehabilitation from such sources as employers, community service organizations, community and religious leaders, and members of the Bar. For further instruction of the evidence required to establish rehabilitation for readmission, the applicant is directed to the Policy Statement of the Board to Determine Fitness of Bar Applicants and the opinions of the Supreme Court of Georgia in readmission cases, such as In the Matter of Myers, 318 Ga. 704 (2024); In the Matter of Skelton, 317 Ga. 280 (2023); In the Matter of Fitzgerald, 310 Ga. 754 (2021); In the Matter of Kendall, 297 Ga. 798 (2015); In the Matter of Hawk, 296 Ga. 356 (2014); In the Matter of Bridges, 289 Ga. 21 (2011); In the Matter of Calhoun, 286 Ga. 471 (2010); In the Matter of Friedberg, 286 Ga. 472 (2010); and In the Matter of Siegelman, 285 Ga. 817 (2009).