IOLTA History

Founding and Early Development (1983 to 1994)

January 10, 1983 In re Interest on Lawyers Trust Accounts, No. 82-276, 278 Ark. 644, 644 S.W.2d 924 (1983) The Arkansas Supreme Court published a proposal to create an IOLTA program for public comment.

April 11, 1983 In re Interest on Lawyers Trust Accounts, No. 82-276, 279 Ark. 84, 648 S.W.2d 480 (1983) The Court denied the Arkansas Bar Association’s petition to create an IOLTA program, citing concerns about the unauthorized taking of client property. While supportive of the concept, the Court held that participation must be conditioned on notice to and approval by clients.

September 17, 1984 In re Petition to Create IOLTA, No. 84-90, 283 Ark. 252, 675 S.W.2d 355 (1984) The Court established the Arkansas IOLTA Program as a voluntary program to collect interest on attorney trust accounts that are nominal in amount and of short duration. Proceeds were approved for legal aid, student loans and scholarships, and improvements to the administration of justice.

May 13, 1985 In re Interest on Lawyers’ Trust Accounts, No. 84-90, 286 Ark. 64, 689 S.W.2d 352 (1985) Client notification requirements under Rule 1.15 were modified to clarify that notice is only required when a client’s funds are actually deposited in the IOLTA account.

May 5, 1986 In re Interest on Lawyers’ Trust Accounts, No. 84-90, 289 Ark. 595, 709 S.W.2d 400 (1986) Attorneys were permitted to satisfy client notice requirements by posting a notice in their office rather than mailing notice to each client individually. The Foundation was also authorized to provide the required notice to participating attorneys and law firms.

November 9, 1987 In re Interest on Lawyers’ Trust Accounts, No. 84-90, 293 Ark. 511, 738 S.W.2d 803 (1987) The composition of the IOLTA Foundation Board was modified to reflect the Court’s continued involvement in the program while removing the requirement that the Chief Justice and two Associate Justices serve as board members.

October 17, 1994 In re Petition to Modify Rule 1.15, No. 94-128, 885 S.W.2d 846 (1994) The Arkansas Supreme Court converted participation in the IOLTA Program from voluntary to mandatory for all attorneys handling qualifying client funds.

Growth and Modernization (2002 to 2015)

February 21, 2002 In re Section 28 of the Supreme Court Procedures Regulating Professional Conduct, 347 Ark. Appx. 1085 (2002) The Court adopted Section 28 of the Procedures Regulating Professional Conduct, implementing automatic overdraft reporting requirements for banks participating in the IOLTA Program.

March 3, 2005 In re Petition to Revise the Arkansas Rules of Professional Conduct, No. 03-1049 The Court granted the Arkansas Bar Association’s petition to adopt rules mirroring the American Bar Association’s Model Rules of Professional Conduct, explicitly affirming that Rule 1.15 would retain Arkansas’s IOLTA and overdraft notification provisions unchanged.

June 1, 2006 In re Rules Governing Admission to the Bar The Court recognized “voluntary inactive status” and authorized the Clerk of the Supreme Court, in cooperation with the IOLTA Program, to modify the annual IOLTA Compliance Statement to include voluntary inactive attorneys as a category exempt from maintaining an IOLTA account.

June 29, 2006 In re Proposed Amendment to Rule 1.15, No. 06-625 The Court acknowledged a petition filed by the IOLTA Foundation to implement comparability requirements and invited public comment on proposed changes.

November 30, 2006 In re Adoption of Amendment to Rule 1.15, No. 06-625 The Court adopted changes to Rule 1.15 requiring banks to pay interest rates on IOLTA accounts comparable to rates paid on similarly situated non-IOLTA products.

April 2, 2009 In re Access to Justice Commission The Court created and funded an Executive Director position for the Arkansas Access to Justice Commission and directed the IOLTA Board of Directors and Access to Justice Commission to explore options for best meeting the legal needs of low-income Arkansans.

February 3, 2011 In re Supreme Court Committee on Professional Conduct Proposal to Amend Procedures Regulating Professional Conduct, 2011 Ark. 38 The Court proposed changes to the Procedures Governing Professional Conduct, including elimination of commentary to Section 28, and set forth the required form of an overdraft notification agreement for banks participating in IOLTA.

May 26, 2011 In re Supreme Court Committee on Professional Conduct Proposal to Amend Procedures Regulating Professional Conduct, 2011 Ark. 242 The Court adopted the proposed changes to the Procedures Governing Professional Conduct, finalizing the overdraft notification agreement requirements for participating banks.

September 26, 2013 In re Petition to Merge Arkansas Access to Justice Commission, Inc., and Arkansas IOLTA Foundation, Inc., 2013 Ark. 355 The Court approved the merger of the Arkansas IOLTA Foundation and the Arkansas Access to Justice Foundation, effective January 1, 2014, and adopted conforming amendments to Rule of Professional Conduct 1.15 and Section 28 of the Procedures Governing the Professional Conduct of Attorneys at Law.

November 5, 2015 In re Amendment of Ark. R. Prof’l Conduct 1.15 and Admin. Order No. 22, 2015 Ark. 420 The Court established a mechanism for attorneys and estates of deceased attorneys to handle unclaimed or unidentifiable funds in client trust accounts. Bank compliance requirements were also updated to require electronic reporting and remittance, and provisions governing bank compliance and interest rate comparability were moved to a new administrative order.