PRO HAC VICE


Illinois Supreme Court Rule 707 (Permission for an Out-of-State Attorney to Provide Legal Services in Proceedings in Illinois) grants eligible lawyers from other jurisdictions immediate authorization to appear in Illinois proceedings upon the filing of a verified Statement by the out-of-state lawyer and the filing of an appearance by associated local counsel.  No order of the tribunal permitting the appearance is required. The attorney must, however, serve the verified Statement on the ARDC, register annually with the ARDC, pay fees to the ARDC, and comply with certain continuing disclosure requirements.  Out-of-state lawyers with permission to provide legal services in Illinois pursuant to Rule 707 are subject to the disciplinary and unauthorized practice of law authority of the Illinois Supreme Court.

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Out-of-state attorneys wishing to appear in Illinois proceedings should follow these steps:

  1. Complete a Verified Statement Form and attach certificates or letters of good standing from each state jurisdiction in which the out-of-state attorney is admitted. Certificates and letters of good standing must have been issued within the preceding six months.
  2. Serve copies of the verified Statement on:

    • all parties to the proceeding;
    • local counsel;
    • your client; and
    • the ARDC.

    Service on the ARDC may be made via email to Rule707@iardc.org. Paper copies may be sent by postal mail to the ARDC’s Chicago office, although this is not necessary. Do not send any payment to the ARDC at the time of service.

  3. File the verified Statement with the Illinois court or agency before which the proceeding is pending. Some Illinois courts require lawyers to include an ARDC registration number on their filings. If you do not yet have an ARDC registration and are told that you cannot file your verified Statement without one, we recommend having local counsel file the Statement for you.
  4. Wait for a communication from the ARDC, which should come within 2-3 business days. That communication will include the ARDC registration number assigned to you, information about how to register with the ARDC and information about payment of the required fees.
  5. Register with the ARDC online at: https://registration.iardc.org/attyreg/registration/.

An ARDC ID card will be sent to you following your completion of all registration requirements.

To be eligible to provide legal services in Illinois pursuant to Rule 707, an out-of-state attorney:

  • must be admitted to practice “without limitation” in another jurisdiction (which may be a foreign country);
  • must not be prohibited from practicing in any other jurisdiction due to suspension, disbarment, resignation with charges pending, or permanent retirement;
  • must not have entered appearances in more than six Illinois proceedings in a calendar year;
  • must not have been enjoined from obtaining Rule 707 permission in Illinois; and
  • must not have been previously admitted to practice law in Illinois generally or conditionally.

Attorneys who have been granted limited admission in Illinois as house counsel (Rule 716), as legal service program lawyers (Rule 717), or as foreign legal consultants (Rules 712 and 713) are not precluded from obtaining permission to provide legal services under Rule 707.

Out-of-state attorneys must comply with the provisions of Rule 707 to represent clients in the following types of proceedings in Illinois:

  • cases pending before courts of the State of Illinois;
  • court-annexed alternative dispute resolution proceedings; and
  • cases and matters before agencies or administrative tribunals of the State of Illinois or of local government units in Illinois, if the representation constitutes the practice of law in Illinois or the agency or tribunal requires that representative for parties be attorneys.

The appeal or review of a proceeding before a different tribunal is a separate proceeding for purposes of Rule 707.

Rule 707 does not affect the longstanding practice under which an out-of-state attorney authorized to practice law in another United States jurisdiction is permitted to provide legal services at a deposition in an Illinois proceeding without need of separate Rule 707 permission, if the out-of-state attorney is assisting an attorney whose appearance in the proceeding is authorized, regardless of the location of the deposition. The out-of-state attorney is subject to the disciplinary jurisdiction of the Supreme Court of Illinois (Supreme Court Rules 751(a), 752(a) and (b), 779(a) and Rule 8.5 of the Illinois Rules of Professional Conduct). The longstanding practice is consistent with Rule 5.5 of the Illinois Rules of Professional Conduct.

The standard fees for out-of-state attorneys appearing in Illinois proceedings pursuant to Rule 707 are as follows:

  • a one-time, nonrefundable fee of $250 for each proceeding in which the lawyer appears; and
  • an annual ARDC registration fee of $121 during every year in which the attorney’s appearance is of record in one or more Illinois proceedings.

Fees should not be sent to the ARDC at the time of the initial filing and service of the attorney’s verified Statement. The ARDC will contact the attorney with payment instructions after receiving the attorney’s verified Statement.

Out-of-state attorneys must register with the ARDC within 30 days of filing a verified Statement if not already registered with the ARDC for the current year, and thereafter, annually. Registration, including payment of the registration fee, is done online through the ARDC’s online registration portal. The ARDC sends registration notices to attorneys practicing in Illinois pursuant to Rule 707 in mid-January

Out-of-state attorneys are responsible for the $250 per-proceeding fee and ARDC registration fees upon the filing of a Rule 707 verified Statement whether or not they actually appear before the Illinois court or tribunal thereafter.

Under Rule 707(f), some attorneys are excepted from the per-proceeding and registration fee requirements. These include attorneys appointed to represent indigent clients, those representing clients of nonprofit legal service organizations, and government lawyers representing the United States. Lawyers who believe they are exempt from the fee requirements should submit a written explanation of the basis on which they claim the exemption via email to Rule707@iardc.org.

The ARDC retains $75 from of each $250 per-proceeding to fund the cost of administering Rule 707. The $175 balance of each fee is remitted to a fund established for the benefit of the Illinois Supreme Court’s Access to Justice Commission and related programs designed to improve access to justice for low-income and disadvantaged Illinois residents.

The out-of-state attorney’s verified Statement must include the information listed below. A fillable verified Statement form is provided at: Verified Statement Form.

  • the out-of-state lawyers’ full name;
  • any ARDC registration number previously assigned to the lawyer;
  • the addresses of all offices from which the out-of-state lawyer practices;
  • all business email addresses and telephone numbers used by the out-of state lawyer;
  • the full name, business address, and ARDC number of local counsel;
  • the names of the party or parties that the out-of-state lawyers will represent in the Illinois proceeding;
  • a listing of all Illinois cases previously handled by the attorney during the same calendar year;
  • a listing of all jurisdictions in which the out-of-state attorney has been admitted to practice law, together with the full name under which the attorney has been admitted in each jurisdiction, and the bar or license number assigned;
  • letters of good standing from each jurisdiction in which the out-of-state attorney has been admitted to practice law issued within the preceding six months;
  • a description of any office or other presence the out-of-state attorney maintains in Illinois for the practice of law;
  • a statement that the out-of-state attorney submits to the disciplinary authority of the Illinois Supreme Court;
  • a statement that the out-of-state attorney has undertaken to become familiar with and to comply, as if admitted to practice in Illinois, with the rules of the Supreme Court of Illinois and other Illinois law and practices pertaining to the proceeding; and
  • a certificate of service showing service of the statement upon all parties entitled to notice, including the ARDC.

Out-of-state attorneys practicing in Illinois pursuant to Rule 707 must notify the ARDC in writing within 30 days of the following events and information changes:

  • the attorney’s conviction of crime;
  • the attorney’s discipline or loss or eligibility to practice in another jurisdiction;
  • the attorney’s admission to practice in a new jurisdiction;
  • any changes with respect to local counsel or local counsel’s contact information;
  • any changes with respect to any office or other presence maintained by the out-of-state attorney in Illinois; and
  • the conclusion of the out-of-state attorney’s practice in an Illinois proceeding.

All written notices and disclosures to the ARDC pursuant to Rule 707 may be sent by email to Rule707@iardc.org.

Out-of-state attorneys and Illinois attorneys are required to respond expeditiously to requests for information from the ARDC related to any inquiry relating to the out-of-state lawyer’s verified Statement. Out-of-state lawyers are also required to provide the ARDC with waivers upon request to authorize bar admission and disciplinary authorities to disclose information to the ARDC.

Out-of state attorneys may appear pursuant to Rule 707 in up to six Illinois proceedings in a calendar year. For each additional proceeding in which the out-of state attorney appears after the first, the attorney must file a new verified Statement with the appropriate court or tribunal. All verified Statements must include the required certificate(s) or letter(s) of good standing, must be served on the ARDC, and must be served on all parties to the proceedings in which they are filed. A separate $250 fee must be paid for each proceeding in which the out-of-state attorney appears, but annual registration fees and other annual registration requirements are not impacted by the number of Illinois proceedings in which the out-of-state appears.