In the District of Columbia, a lawyer’s responsibility for funds that are entrusted to him or her is governed by the D.C. 规则 of Professional Conduct, specifically Rule 1.15. 在这个规则下, client or third party funds in the lawyer’s possession (trust funds) as a result of a representation must be placed in a trust account.
8月1日生效, 2010, trust funds that are nominal in amount or expected to be held for a short period of time, and thus will not earn income greater than the cost incurred to secure such income, are to be held in an IOLTA帐户 in a compliant bank.
The IOLTA帐户 is opened by the lawyer completing the D.C. IOLTA Account Registration Form and submitting the form to a D.C. 符合IOLTA标准的银行.
IOLTA形式
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Note: Many banks use this form. However, take the form with you when you open an IOLTA帐户, then forward it to the D.C. 酒吧基础. Do not send it directly to the 酒吧 or attempt to fill it out online.
D.C. IOLTA帐户 shall include the name of the lawyer or law firm that controls the account and the words D.C. IOLTA Account or IOLTA Account.
Interest earned on the pooled trust funds in a D.C. IOLTA帐户 goes to the D.C. 酒吧基础 to fund pro bono legal services. A D.C. IOLTA帐户 uses the 酒吧基础’s tax identification number because the Foundation is the beneficial owner of the interest.
The determination of whether client funds are nominal in amount or to be held for a short period of time rests in the sound judgment of each lawyer or law firm operating the account. (见规则1).15、评论[5])
For additional information about client trust accounts or handling client funds, contact the D.C. 酒吧 Practice Management Advisory Service at 202-780-2764 (Kaitlin McGee) or 202-780-2762 (Dan Mills). The Practice Management Advisory Service is a free and confidential service of the District of Columbia 酒吧 to help members with a wide range of practice management issues. For free and confidential assistance with ethical questions, please contact the D.C. 酒吧’s legal ethics counsel at 202–737-4700 ext 1010.
Frequently Asked Questions
Am I required to have an IOLTA帐户?
Yes, if you receive IOLTA eligible funds. You are not required to have any client trust accounts until you begin to receive trust funds. 例如, lawyers who are not in private practice may never receive IOLTA eligible funds. When you begin to receive funds on behalf of clients, such as advance fees or unearned costs, you must maintain either a separate trust account for each client (if the amount is expected to earn interest for the client in excess of the cost of maintaining the account), or an interest bearing common–client or “pooled” trust account to hold the funds of more than one client. Advance fee payments such as flat fees or sums against which an hourly rate will be applied are typically deposited into the D.C. IOLTA帐户. Absent informed consent from the client, a fee advance from a client must be placed in a trust account. Most firms place these fee advances in a D.C. IOLTA帐户 because the advances are considered either nominal in amount or to be held for a short period of time and therefore any interest earned in an individual trust account would be consumed by the expense of administration. Therefore, if you receive IOLTA eligible funds, you must have a D.C. IOLTA帐户. If money you receive as a lawyer is for payment of legal services you have already provided, 例如, 你完成了工作, sent a bill and were paid, then you do not need a trust account of any kind.
Are there any exceptions to the new, mandatory IOLTA帐户 rule?
Yes, there are two limited exceptions. Trust funds are not deposited into a D.C. IOLTA when the lawyer is otherwise compliant with the contrary mandates of a tribunal. 换句话说, if a court order directs the lawyer to place trust funds in an account other than a D.C. IOLTA帐户, the lawyer must comply. The second exception occurs when the lawyer is participating in and compliant with the IOLTA program of another jurisdiction where the lawyer is licensed and principally practices. 例如, if the lawyer is licensed in and principally practices in Maryland, IOLTA eligible funds from D.C. clients can be deposited into the Maryland IOLTA帐户 and the lawyer would not need a D.C. IOLTA帐户.
Lawyers may seek additional guidance from the D.C. 酒吧’s legal ethics counsel, at 202-737-4700, ext. 1010或at (电子邮件保护).
How do I set up an IOLTA帐户?
The same financial institution where you have your business (operating) account should be able to help you set it up using the proper forms, but you may choose any financial institution that is on the list of approved financial institutions. The list of approved financial institutions is available from the D.C. 酒吧基础 (202-467-3750) or from the 董事会 on Professional Responsibility (202-638-4290). If the person you are dealing with at the financial institution does not know what an IOLTA帐户 is, 去找另一个人, 分支, or financial institution, or call the IOLTA program administrator (202-467-3750) or the Practice Management Advisor of the D.C. 酒吧 (202-780-2762 or 202-780-2764) for help.
Where can I find the IOLTA形式?
这是一页，51页.80kb PDF文件
现在下载并保存
Note: Many banks use this form. However, take the form with you when you open an IOLTA帐户, then forward it to the D.C. 酒吧基础. Do not send it directly to the 酒吧 or attempt to fill it out online.
Do all of my trust accounts have to be IOLTA帐户s?
No, just the common–client trust account to which you deposit client funds of more than one client that are nominal in amount or to be held for a short period of time. Other trust accounts that you may choose to open for a single client ordinarily will not be IOLTA帐户s; the client will get all interest on the funds held. Whether to set up a separate trust account rests in the sound judgment of the lawyer (见规则1).15、评论[5]). The separate account is generally set up when the funds are more than “nominal” and/or to be held for longer than a “short” duration, such that the interest earned will not be consumed by the cost of administering the account.
