Title 1, Courts of Record; Court Officers; Juries

No attorney shall accept from a solicitor described in ORS 9.500 any claim for damages, or bring an action for damages on account of any claim obtained from such solicitor. Any agreement between an attorney and such solicitor regarding compensation to be paid to the attorney or s…

The Supreme Court may disbar, suspend or reprimand a licensee of the bar whenever, upon proper proceedings for that purpose, it appears to the court that: (1) The licensee has committed an act or carried on a course of conduct of such nature that, if the licensee were applying fo…

(1) Notwithstanding ORS 9.527 (4), the attorneys listed in subsection (2) of this section: (a) May provide legal advice and direction to the officers and employees of a public body, as defined in ORS 192.311, or to the officers and employees of the federal government, on conducti…

Bar proceedings relating to discipline, admission and reinstatement are neither civil nor criminal in nature. They are sui generis and within the inherent power of the Supreme Court to control. The grounds for denying any applicant admission or reinstatement or for the discipline…

The Supreme Court shall appoint a state professional responsibility board to institute disciplinary proceedings of the Oregon State Bar against licensees of the bar, as provided in the bar bylaws and the rules of the Supreme Court. [1983 c.618 §4; 2017 c.524 §1; 2025 c.32 §31]

(1) The Supreme Court shall appoint a disciplinary board, which may include one or more professional adjudicators as set forth in the rules of the Supreme Court and the Oregon State Bar bylaws, to adjudicate disciplinary proceedings of the bar. (2) A licensee, formally accused of…

(1) Upon the conclusion of a hearing, the disciplinary board shall file with the State Court Administrator a written decision in the matter. The Oregon State Bar or the accused may seek review of the decision by the Supreme Court. Such review shall be a matter of right upon the r…

(1) Any person who has made a complaint to the bar concerning the conduct of a licensee, or who has given information or testimony in or relative to a proposed or pending admission, reinstatement or disciplinary proceeding is absolutely immune from civil liability for any such ac…

ORS 9.534 and 9.536 apply to admission and reinstatement proceedings to the extent provided in the rules of procedure and the rules of the Supreme Court. However, the Supreme Court shall review the decisions of the disciplinary board in all such matters. [1983 c.618 §8; 2025 c.32…

(1) The board of governors, subject to the approval of the Supreme Court, may adopt rules of procedure relating to the investigation of the conduct of licensees and applicants for admission and reinstatement to the bar, and relating to the conduct of admission, reinstatement and …

(1) Upon commencement of any action in which the bar is a plaintiff, the bar shall mail a copy of the complaint by certified or registered mail, return receipt requested, to the Attorney General and shall file proof of such mailing with the court. (2) When the bar is served with …

(1) The Department of Revenue may provide to the Oregon State Bar the name and address of any person admitted to practice law in this state if the department has reasonable grounds to believe that: (a) The person admitted to practice law prepared a return or report for another pe…

(1)(a) The board of governors of the Oregon State Bar may create a state lawyers assistance committee for the purpose of implementing a licensees assistance program and, pursuant thereto, authorize the state lawyers assistance committee to investigate and resolve complaints or re…

(1) The Oregon State Bar shall by rule establish a Legal Services Program. The program shall provide standards and guidelines for legal service providers receiving funding from the program. The rules shall also provide methods for evaluating legal service providers. Funding recei…

(1) The director of the Legal Services Program appointed under ORS 9.572 shall periodically review legal service providers who receive funding from the program. If the director determines that there are reasonable grounds to believe that a provider is not in substantial complianc…

The Oregon State Bar may apply for, accept and expend moneys from any public or private source, including the federal government, made available for the purpose of establishing or funding legal service programs in Oregon. [1997 c.801 §75]

All amounts paid or delivered to the Oregon State Bar under ORCP 32 O are continuously appropriated to the Oregon State Bar, and may be used only for the funding of legal services provided through the Legal Services Program established under ORS 9.572. [2015 c.2 §4] Note: 9.582 w…

As used in ORS 9.615 to 9.665, “client security fund” means a fund created under ORS 9.625. [1967 c.546 §2]

The board of governors may adopt a plan to relieve or mitigate pecuniary losses to the clients of active licensees caused by dishonest conduct of those licensees in their practice of law. The plan may provide for establishing, administering and dissolving a separate fund and for …

A client security fund may include: (1) Transfers by the board of governors from other funds of the state bar; (2) Voluntary contributions and payments by licensees under ORS 9.645; (3) Claims recovered under ORS 9.665; and (4) Income from investments of the fund. [1967 c.546 §4;…

To establish and maintain a client security fund, the board of governors may require an annual payment by each active licensee of the state bar. The payment authorized by this section shall be due at the same time, and enforced in the same manner, as payment of the annual licensu…

(1) Upon the filing of a claim, verified under oath, by a client claiming a pecuniary loss payable from the client security fund, the board of governors or its designated representative shall determine if the person named in the claim as the licensee whose dishonest conduct cause…

(1) Any person who has made a claim with the client security fund committee of the bar concerning a loss allegedly caused by the intentional dishonest conduct of a licensee representing the person, or who has given information to the bar relative to a client security fund claim o…

(1) Except as provided in this section, reimbursement from the client security fund is discretionary with the board of governors. (2) The board shall not authorize payment unless the conditions of ORS 9.655 (1) have been found to exist. However, the board may, in its sole discret…

(1) An active licensee of the Oregon State Bar shall certify annually to the bar whether the licensee maintains any lawyer trust accounts in Oregon. If a licensee maintains one or more lawyer trust accounts, the licensee must disclose the financial institution in which each accou…

(1) Subject to the requirements of ORS 9.490, the Supreme Court may establish a trust account overdraft notification program for licensees. (2) The board of governors may adopt regulations for the administration of a trust account overdraft notification program established under …

A circuit court has jurisdiction to determine who is entitled to property contained in a lawyer trust account during a probate of a deceased licensee’s estate. [2021 c.497 §10; 2023 c.72 §18; 2025 c.32 §47]

(1) Notwithstanding ORS 133.535, the files, papers, effects or work premises of a licensee relating to the provision of legal service by the licensee shall not be subject to search or seizure by any law enforcement officer, either by search warrant or otherwise. (2) The provision…

As used in ORS 9.705 to 9.757: (1) “Affected licensee” means a licensee or former licensee of the Oregon State Bar whose law practice is placed within the jurisdiction of the court under ORS 9.720 or as to whom a petition has been filed to place such law practice within the juris…

The circuit court of the county in which a licensee engaged in the practice of law in this state maintains or has maintained a principal office has jurisdiction as provided in ORS 9.705 to 9.757 whenever the licensee has died, is disbarred or suspended from the active practice of…

(1) When the Oregon State Bar or an attorney determines that one of the circumstances listed in ORS 9.710 exists, the bar or the attorney may petition the court ex parte to take immediate jurisdiction over the affected licensee’s law practice as provided in ORS 9.705 to 9.757. (2…

If the court finds that it has jurisdiction and finds that the assumption of such jurisdiction is necessary in order to protect the interest of the clients of the affected licensee or to protect the public interest, the court may, by appropriate order, immediately take jurisdicti…

(1) If the court assumes jurisdiction under ORS 9.705 to 9.757, it shall appoint the Oregon State Bar or, if the bar declines the appointment, an attorney, to act as custodian of the law practice of the affected licensee. Immediately upon appointment, the bar shall take possessio…

The Oregon State Bar or an attorney appointed as custodian of a law practice under ORS 9.725 shall serve a copy of an order appointing the custodian on the affected licensee or any person assisting in the suspension or termination of the affected licensee’s practice. The bar or a…

After appointment as custodian of a law practice under ORS 9.725, the Oregon State Bar may engage the services of the Oregon State Bar Professional Liability Fund created under ORS 9.005 to 9.757 or any active licensee of the bar to assist in the performance of the bar’s duties a…

The court shall enter a judgment awarding reasonable compensation and expenses to the Oregon State Bar or an attorney appointed under ORS 9.725 for acting as custodian under ORS 9.705 to 9.757. The judgment shall be against the affected licensee or the estate of the affected lice…

Jurisdictional and final orders of the circuit court pursuant to ORS 9.705 to 9.757 are appealable but may not be stayed except as ordered by the circuit court or any appellate court. [1979 c.252 §7; 1985 c.512 §10; 1989 c.1052 §21]

Any applicable statute of limitations or time limit for the filing set by statute or rule of court as it relates to the affected licensee’s clients shall be suspended automatically by the filing of a petition for jurisdiction under ORS 9.705 to 9.757 for a period of 120 days foll…

Persons examining the files and records of the law practice of an affected licensee pursuant to ORS 9.705 to 9.757 shall preserve the confidentiality of the information relating to the affected licensee’s representation of a client and shall make disclosure only to the extent nec…

Whenever the purposes of ORS 9.705 to 9.757 have been accomplished with respect to the law practice of an affected licensee for which the Oregon State Bar or an attorney has been appointed as custodian under ORS 9.725, the bar or the appointed attorney shall file with the court a…

(1) Except as provided in subsection (2) of this section or by court order, the Oregon State Bar may dispose of client papers and files that have not been claimed by a client of an affected licensee within six months after written notice to the client from the bar. The bar must d…

The State Court Administrator may authorize any library of the judicial department of government to provide photographic or other copies of any of its materials, and to make reasonable charges for such copies or services. [Amended by 1959 c.655 §1; 1985 c.308 §2]

The State Court Administrator may send, free of charge, one copy of the codes, session laws and Supreme Court, Court of Appeals and Oregon Tax Court reports of this state as the same may be published, to each state and foreign country that exchanges, free of charge, its codes, se…

The Legislative Counsel shall, upon requisition of the State Court Administrator, supply a sufficient number of copies of the codes and session laws of this state, as the same may be published, to carry out the provisions of ORS 9.780. [Amended by 1985 c.308 §4]

The State Court Administrator may sell the unused sets of Oregon codes and session laws which are not needed for the purpose of exchanging for the codes and session laws of other states and for other books. The sales shall be for cash and the proceeds deposited as provided by ORS…

(1) Each county shall: (a) Operate a free law library at a location that is convenient and available at reasonable hours; or (b) Provide free law library services at one or more locations that are convenient and available at reasonable hours. (2) A county governing body may enter…