O'Neil's legal fights reflected in legislation
HELENA - Legal troubles for state Sen. Jerry O'Neil, R-Columbia Falls, have translated to legislation that he hopes will reform Montana's judicial system and make it more accessible to the public.
O'Neil, entering his second term in the Senate, plans to introduce more than a dozen bills covering a range of topics, but several have a consistent judicial theme and they are derived from O'Neil's skirmishes with the legal establishment.
Most recently, the Montana Commission on Practice pursued court action against O'Neil and his work as a paralegal, alleging that he has been engaged in "unlawful practice of law."
O'Neil filed a countersuit, which District Judge Kim Christopher of Polson dismissed, and he requested a jury trial, which the judge rejected.
Christopher cited O'Neil for contempt and issued an injunction stopping him from unauthorized practice of law.
O'Neil has since taken his case to the federal court system, charging that a Montana statute has a unconstitutionally vague definition of unlawful practice of law, and he has drafted legislation to address the issues he has encountered.
One bill would establish provisions for a defendant to appeal to the state Supreme Court for a jury trial in a case where a jury trial has been requested but denied. In O'Neil's case, he said he was denied a jury trial and had to proceed with a bench trial before he could appeal the jury issue.
Another bill would clarify the state's statute on the "practice of law," making it clear that attorneys do not have an exclusive right to offer legal advice.
"A certified public accountant, legislator, land surveyor, peace officer, stock broker, title insurance or insurance professional, real estate broker, paralegal, psychiatrist, psychologist, social worker, counselor, mediator or any other person does not engage in the practice of law by discussing the law with any person free of charge or for a fee," says the title description of Senate Bill 111.
"I'm trying to give more people better access to the judicial system," said O'Neil, who has long contended that attorneys have a monopoly in providing the public access to the legal system.
O'Neil is proposing another bill that would revise the eligibility requirements for taking the Montana Bar Examination. Having a law degree would no longer be necessary, but applicants would have to have a bachelor's degree plus three years of general law studies to take the bar exam.
A legislator who had been in office for more than three years, or a person who completed a home law study course, would meet the law studies requirement, O'Neil said.
"I would not be able to take the bar exam, because I don't have a bachelor's degree," O'Neil added.
Another bill from O'Neil would exclude "the preparation of certain documents" from being considered practicing law. Deeds, wills, parenting plans and separation agreements are the types of documents that should not be considered work only for attorneys, O'Neil said.
Considering that consumers can purchase software programs to prepare many legal documents, O'Neil said consumers should be able to hire someone other than an attorney to do the same type of work.
All of O'Neil's bills are bound to meet stiff resistance, mainly from lobbyists representing lawyers.
"There will be opposition," he said. "The bar association will be against it. They will want to protect their monopoly."
But O'Neil contends that his legislation will provide more affordable, competitive and responsive access to the legal system.
He rejects any suggestion that his bills are self-serving.
"The reason I'm in this line of work in the first place is to make the justice system more accessible," he said. "I'm not in it for the money."
O'Neil said he started as a paralegal after a "messy divorce" that got "tangled up" with attorneys in Idaho years ago.
"It made me very upset with the judicial system," he said.
Reporter Jim Mann may be reached at 758-4407 or by e-mail at jmann@dailyinterlake.com