The Oklahoma Bar Journal December 2022

B ar F oundation N ews

IOLTA Interest Rate Comparability is Fully Implemented, Effective Jan. 1, 2023

By Valerie Couch

E VERY DAY IN THE COURSE of the Oklahoma Bar Foundation’s work, we hear com pelling stories. We hear stories of lives transformed by the founda tion’s support. We also hear tragic stories of people derailed by the lack of legal services. Our work takes us to the intersection of the law and mental illness, drug dependency, domestic violence, homelessness and child abuse and neglect. These stories drive us to be better, more effective and more connected to the urgent needs of Oklahomans. To increase resources to meet these ever-growing needs, the foundation recently asked the Oklahoma Supreme Court Safekeeping Property. On Oct. 10, the Supreme Court granted the request and amended the rule, effective Jan. 1, 2023. With this change, Oklahoma joins 38 other state jurisdictions that have fully implemented interest rate com parability as a requirement for lawyers’ trust accounts – a step that will significantly increase revenues for the foundation’s grant programs in the coming years. to amend Oklahoma Rule of Professional Conduct 1.15,

institutions were paying on non-lawyer deposit accounts or what the IOLTA rates should be. Consequently, many financial institutions offering preferred interest rates to non-IOLTA depos itors did not provide comparable rates on IOLTA accounts and, in fact, routinely paid extremely low rates, even on IOLTA accounts with large balances. We needed technical adjustments to the rule to ensure that fair and comparable interest rates were paid on law yers’ trust accounts.

Prior to the amendments, Rule 1.15 contained a provision for interest rate comparability on lawyers’ trust accounts by stat ing, “The rate of interest payable on [an IOLTA] account shall not be less than the rate paid by the depository institution to regular, non-lawyer depositors.” The problem, however, was the rule did not contain any provisions implementing rate comparability. The rule did not have a mechanism for determin ing the interest rates financial

AMENDMENTS TO OKLAHOMA RULE OF PROFESSIONAL CONDUCT 1.15, SAFEKEEPING PROPERTY

On Oct. 10, 2022, upon application made by the Oklahoma Bar Foundation, the Oklahoma Supreme Court amended Rule 1.15, Safekeeping Property, of the Oklahoma Rules of

Professional Conduct to clarify the meaning and implementation of “interest rate comparability” in the rule. The amendments will become effective Jan. 1, 2023. Scan the QR code with your phone or visit http://bit.ly/3GFHSHD to read the order.

58 | DECEMBER 2022

THE OKLAHOMA BAR JOURNAL