Licensure; revise reciprocity requirements for out-of-state attorneys.

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To: Judiciary A
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE REGULAR SESSION 2026

By: Representative McLean

HOUSE BILL NO. 879

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 73-3-25, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO 1
PROVIDE THAT A LAWYER FROM ANOTHER STATE WHO ESTABLISHES RESIDENCY 2
IN MISSISSIPPI FOR TWELVE CONSECUTIVE MONTHS WHO ALSO HAS 3
PRACTICED FOR NOT LESS THAN FIVE YEARS IN A STATE WHERE HE OR SHE 4
IS ADMITTED, IN GOOD STANDING AND ON ACTIVE STATUS MUST BE 5
ADMITTED TO PRACTICE IN THIS STATE WITHOUT BEING REQUIRED TO TAKE 6
AN EXAMINATION; TO AMEND SECTION 73-3-2, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, 7
TO CONFORM TO THE PRECEDING SECTION; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES. 8
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI: 9
SECTION 1. Section 73-3-25, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 10
amended as follows: 11
73-3-25. Any lawyer from another state * * * who establishes 12
residency in Mississippi for twelve (12) consecutive months 13
and * * * who has practiced not less than five (5) years in a 14
state where he or she was then admitted * * * shall be admitted 15
to * * * practice in this state * * *. 16
Any lawyer from another state desiring to be admitted to 17
practice in Mississippi must make application to the Board of Bar 18
Admissions. Such applicant shall present to the bar evidence of 19
his or her good standing and active status in the state from which 20
he or she came, including a certificate from the clerk of the 21
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highest appellate court of the state from which he or she came, 22
and from two (2) members of the bar of such state, certifying to 23
his or her qualifications, good standing and moral character of 24
the applicant, and the board may require the submission of 25
additional evidence by the applicant. Upon satisfactory proof of 26
the applicant's qualifications and upon the applicant's compliance 27
with the requirements of this section, the board shall issue a 28
certificate of admission to the applicant, as prescribed in 29
Section 73-3-2(8). Each such applicant shall pay an application 30
fee prescribed by the Board of Bar Admissions according to Section 31
73-3-2(7). 32
SECTION 2. Section 73-3-2, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 33
amended as follows: 34
73-3-2. (1) Power to admit persons to practice. The power 35
to admit persons to practice as attorneys in the courts of this 36
state is vested exclusively in the Supreme Court of Mississippi. 37
(2) Qualifications. (a) Each applicant for admission to 38
the bar, in order to be eligible for examination for admission, 39
shall be at least twenty-one (21) years of age, of good moral 40
character, and shall present to the Board of Bar Admissions 41
satisfactory evidence: 42
(i) That he has successfully completed, or is 43
within sixty (60) days of completion of, a general course of study 44
of law in a law school which is provisionally or fully approved by 45
the section on legal education and admission to the bar of the 46
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American Bar Association, and that such applicant has received, or 47
will receive within sixty (60) days, a diploma or certificate from 48
such school evidencing the satisfactory completion of such course, 49
but in no event shall any applicant under this paragraph be 50
admitted to the bar until such applicant actually receives such 51
diploma or certificate. However, an applicant who, as of November 52
1, 1981, was previously enrolled in a law school in active 53
existence in Mississippi for more than ten (10) years prior to the 54
date of application shall be eligible for examination for 55
admission; provided that such an applicant graduated prior to 56
November 1, 1984; 57
(ii) That he has notified the Board of Bar 58
Admissions in writing of an intention to pursue a general course 59
of study of law under the supervision of a Mississippi lawyer 60
prior to July 1, 1979, and in fact began study prior to July 1, 61
1979, and who completed the required course of study prior to 62
November 1, 1984, in accordance with Sections 73-3-13(b) and 63
73-3-15 as the same exist prior to November 1, 1979; or 64
(iii) That in addition to complying with either of 65
the above requirements, he has received a bachelor's degree from 66
an accredited college or university or that he has received credit 67
for the requirements of the first three (3) years of college work 68
from a college or university offering an integrated six-year 69
prelaw and law course, and has completed his law course at a 70
college or university offering such an integrated six-year course. 71
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However, applicants who have already begun the general course of 72
study of law as of November 1, 1979, either in a law school or 73
under the supervision of a Mississippi lawyer shall submit proof 74
they have successfully completed two (2) full years of college 75
work. 76
(b) The applicant shall bear the burden of establishing 77
his or her qualifications for admission to the satisfaction of the 78
Board of Bar Admissions. An applicant denied admission for 79
failure to satisfy qualifications for admission shall have the 80
right to appeal from the final order of the board to the Chancery 81
Court of Hinds County, Mississippi, within thirty (30) days of 82
entry of such order of denial. 83
(3) Creation of Board of Bar Admissions. There is * * * 84
created a board to be known as the "Board of Bar Admissions" which 85
shall be appointed by the Supreme Court of Mississippi. The board 86
shall consist of nine (9) members, who shall be members in good 87
standing of the Mississippi State Bar and shall serve for terms of 88
three (3) years. Three (3) members shall be appointed from each 89
Supreme Court district, one (1) by each Supreme Court Justice from 90
his district, with the original appointments to be as follows: 91
Three (3) to be appointed for a term of one (1) year, three (3) to 92
be appointed for a term of two (2) years, and three (3) to be 93
appointed for a term of three (3) years, one (1) from each 94
district to be appointed each year. No member of the Board of Bar 95
Admissions may be a member of the Legislature. Vacancies during a 96
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term shall be filled by the appointing justice or his successor 97
for the remainder of the unexpired term. 98
The board shall promulgate the necessary rules for the 99
administration of their duties, subject to the approval of the 100
Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. 101
(4) Written examination as prerequisite to admission. 102
Except as otherwise provided in Section 73-3-25, every person 103
desiring admission to the bar * * * shall be required to take and 104
pass a written bar examination in a manner satisfactory to the 105
Board of Bar Admissions. The Board of Bar Admissions shall 106
conduct not less than two (2) bar examinations each year. 107
(5) Oath and compensation of board members. The members of 108
the Board of Bar Admissions shall take and subscribe an oath to be 109
administered by one (1) of the judges of the Supreme Court to 110
faithfully and impartially discharge the duties of the office. 111
The members shall receive compensation as established by the 112
Supreme Court for preparing, giving and grading the examination 113
plus all reasonable and necessary travel expenses incurred in the 114
performance of their duties under the provisions of this section. 115
(6) Procedure for applicants who have failed. Any applicant 116
who fails the examination shall be allowed to take the next 117
scheduled examination. A failing applicant may request in writing 118
from the board, within thirty (30) days after the results of the 119
examination have been made public, copies of his answers and model 120
answers used in grading the examination, at his expense. If a 121
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uniform, standardized examination is administered, the board shall 122
only be required to provide the examination grade and such other 123
information concerning the applicant's examination results which 124
are available to the board. Any failing applicant shall have a 125
right to a review of his failure by the board. The board shall 126
enter an order on its minutes, prior to the administration of the 127
next bar examination, either granting or denying the applicant's 128
review, and shall notify the applicant of such order. The 129
applicant shall have the right to appeal from this order to the 130
Chancery Court of Hinds County, Mississippi, within thirty (30) 131
days of entry of such order. 132
(7) Fees. The board shall set and collect the fees for 133
examination and for admission to the bar. The fees for 134
examination shall be based upon the annual cost of administering 135
the examinations. The fees for admission shall be based upon the 136
cost of conducting an investigation of the applicant and the 137
administrative costs of sustaining the board, which shall include, 138
but shall not be limited to: 139
(a) Expenses and travel for board members; 140
(b) Office facilities, supplies and equipment; and 141
(c) Clerical assistance. 142
All fees collected by the board shall be paid to the State 143
Treasurer, who shall issue receipts therefor and who shall deposit 144
such funds in the State Treasury in a special fund to the credit 145
of * * * the board. All such funds shall be expended only in 146
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ST: Licensure; revise reciprocity requirements
for out-of-state attorneys.
accordance with the provisions of Chapter 496, Laws of 1962, as 147
amended, being Section 27-103-1 et seq., Mississippi Code of 1972. 148
(8) The board, upon finding the applicant qualified for 149
admission, shall issue to the applicant a certificate of 150
admission. The applicant shall file the certificate and a 151
petition for admission in the Chancery Court of Hinds County, 152
Mississippi, or in the chancery court in the county of his 153
residence, or, in the case of an applicant who is a nonresident of 154
the State of Mississippi, in the chancery court of a county in 155
which the applicant intends to practice. The chancery court 156
shall, in termtime or in vacation, enter on the minutes of that 157
court an order granting to the applicant license to practice in 158
all courts in this state, upon taking by the applicant in the 159
presence of the court, the oath prescribed by law, Section 160
73-3-35 * * *. 161
(9) Each application or filing made under this section shall 162
include the social security number(s) of the applicant in 163
accordance with Section 93-11-64 * * *. 164
SECTION 3. This act shall take effect and be in force from 165
and after July 1, 2026. 166