(a) In General. In order to appear on behalf of a party in this Court, counsel must be a
member of the bar of this Court or must qualify under one of the exceptions set forth in
LR 201(b).
(b) Appearance. The filing of a written entry of appearance or any other document signed
on behalf of a party constitutes an entry of appearance for that party. Once counsel enters
an appearance for a party, counsel shall be obliged to continue representing that party
unless and until allowed to withdraw in accordance with these rules.
(c) Designation of Lead Counsel. Each party shall designate one attorney to act as lead
counsel for the case. Lead counsel shall have primary responsibility for the case.
(d) Withdrawal of Appearance. An attorney may withdraw his or her appearance on behalf
of a party in the following manner:
(1) If there are no motions pending before the Court and no trial date has been set, the
attorney may serve and file a notice of withdrawal on his or her client and all
other parties, accompanied by an entry of appearance by successor counsel
certifying that he or she is familiar with the case and is or will be fully prepared to
address any matters pending in the case, including trial, without delaying the case;
or
(2) Otherwise, the attorney must file a motion to withdraw, together with:
(A) An affidavit attesting to the fact that the party is not in the military service
of the United States as defined in the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act of
2003 (50 U.S.C. §§ 3901-4043), as amended; and,
(B) A certification that:
(i) the client has been notified of the motion by both regular mail,
postage prepaid, and by certified or registered mail, return receipt
requested, or by any other method that satisfies the Court that
notice has been given to the client; and,
(ii) the client has been advised that he or she may object to the motion
and that any failure or delay in retaining substitute counsel may not
be considered grounds for delaying the trial or any other matter
scheduled in the case; and,
(C) The client’s current address and a representation that counsel has made a
reasonable effort to confirm that notices sent to that address are likely to
be received by the client; and,
U.S. DISTRICT COURT LOCAL RULES – GENERAL/ATTORNEY RULES
(D) A description of any motions or other matters pending in the case and a
statement regarding the anticipated trial date.
(e) Appearances by Law Students.
(1) Authorization to Appear. A Senior Law Student may appear before this Court
in a civil or criminal proceeding, without compensation, as Law Student Counsel
under the direction of a Supervising Attorney.
(2) Eligibility to Appear as Law Student Counsel. In order to be eligible to appear
as Law Student Counsel, a Senior Law Student must:
(A) be a student at an A.B.A. accredited law school, or be a recent graduate of
such a school, awaiting the result of the first bar examination after the
student’s graduation;
(B) have successfully completed three semesters of law school study;
(C) be enrolled in, or have successfully completed, a course for credit in
evidence or trial practice;
(D) be enrolled in, or have successfully completed, a course for credit in
criminal procedure (for a student appearing in a criminal proceeding); and
(E) establish to the satisfaction of this Court that she or he is of good moral
character and otherwise qualified and fit to appear pursuant to LR Gen
206.
(3) Application.
(A) An application to appear as Law Student Counsel shall be made by
completing and filing a form provided by the Clerk. The form shall
contain a certification that the Senior Law Student:
(i) has read and will abide by the Rules of Professional Conduct of the
Supreme Court of the State of Rhode Island;
(ii) has read and understands these Local Rules; and
(iii) the Senior Law Student has met all of the requirements of LR Gen
206(e)(2).
(B) The application shall also be accompanied by a written recommendation
from the dean of the law school, or her/his designee, attesting to the law
student’s good moral character, legal ability, and training.
U.S. DISTRICT COURT LOCAL RULES – GENERAL/ATTORNEY RULES
(C) In each individual case in which a Senior Law Student wishes to appear,
the supervising attorney shall file a “Motion to Appear as Law Student
Counsel” that shall contain a document, signed by the client and approved
by the supervising attorney, wherein the client acknowledges having been
informed of the Law Student Counsel’s status and authorizes the named
student to appear for and represent the client in the litigation or
proceedings identified in the document. No such acknowledgement is
required to be attached if the Law Student Counsel will be representing the
government. The supervising attorney shall also attach a copy of the Law
Student Counsel’s application to appear as Law Student Counsel to this
motion. The District Judge or Magistrate Judge to whom a case has been
assigned shall have discretion to grant or deny any Motion to Appear as
Law Student Counsel.
(4) Supervising Attorney. In order to appear as a Law Student Counsel before this
Court, the student shall be under the direct supervision of a member in good
standing of the Bar of this Court who is a law school faculty member, licensed
attorney in a legal services program or clinic conducted by a law school or non-
profit organization, or an attorney employed with a governmental agency,
including the United States Attorney’s Office and the Federal Public Defender.
The supervising attorney, in addition to all of the other responsibilities of
supervising the Law Student Counsel, is required to attend all Court proceedings
when the Law Student Counsel is practicing, cosign all filings with the Court, and
submit all filings through the Court’s ECF system.
(5) Revocation. A Law Student Counsel acting under this rule shall comply with the
Rules of Professional Conduct of the Supreme Court of the State of Rhode Island
and the Local Rules of this Court. Failure of an attorney supervising students to
provide proper training or supervision may be grounds for disciplinary action
and/or revocation or restriction of the attorney’s authority to supervise students.
(6) Attorney/Client Communications. The rules of law and of evidence relating to
communications between attorney and client shall govern communications made
or received by any law student acting under the provisions of this rule.
(7) Compensation. The expression “without compensation” used in this rule shall
not be construed to prohibit the receipt of a fixed compensation paid regularly by
a governmental agency or legal assistance program or law school clinical
instruction program acting as the employer of a law student. Furthermore, any
fees awarded in a case involving a Law Student Counsel, shall be awarded to the
supervising attorney or organization, including any fees resulting from any hours
worked by the Law Student Counsel on the case, but under no circumstances are
any of the fees to go to the Law Student Counsel.
U.S. DISTRICT COURT LOCAL RULES – GENERAL/ATTORNEY RULES
(8) Notification. Law Student Counsel shall promptly notify this Court in writing of
any change in name, address, telephone number, fax number, and/or e-mail
address from that shown on the application to appear as Law Student Counsel.
Law Student Counsel shall also notify the Court in writing of any change
regarding their eligibility to appear as Law Student Counsel.
Effective 12/1/18:§(c) deleted; §§(d)-(f) redesignated as §§(c)-(e); and §(d)(2)(A) and (e)(2)(E) amended. Effective
12/2/13: §§(f)(2)(A) and (f)(5). Effective 1/15/13: §(f) added.
CROSS-REFERENCE
See LR Gen 204 (admission and practice by pro hac vice attorneys).
U.S. DISTRICT COURT LOCAL RULES – GENERAL/ATTORNEY RULES
