FLORIDA SUPREME COURT FINDS UNDOCUMENTED IMMIGRANTS CANNOT BE ADMITTED TO STATE BAR. The court issued an advisory opinion to the Florida Board of Bar Examiners concluding that unauthorized immigrants are ineligible for admission to the Florida bar. (No. SC11-2568, 3/6/14) The Florida court reasoned: A person’s status in this country as an authorized or unauthorized alien is determined solely by federal law. That determination addresses whether the person is lawfully present in the United States. Further, Congress has enacted laws that set the terms of employment for aliens and impose civil and criminal penalties on employers who attempt to recruit or hire an unauthorized alien. See 8 U.S.C. §§ 1324-1324a (2012). Therefore, a license issued by a state cannot permit an unauthorized alien to perform work if such conduct is prohibited by federal law. “The federal power to determine immigration policy is well settled.” Arizona, 132 S. Ct. at 2498AILA Doc. No. 14030750. A State license to practice law is a professional license. As this Court is funded through appropriations, the issuance of a license to practice law therefore falls within the prohibition set out in the federal statute. Simply stated, current federal law prohibits this Court from issuing a license to practice law to an unlawful or unauthorized immigrant. Accordingly, we answer the Florida Board of Bar Examiners’ question by holding that unauthorized immigrants are ineligible for admission to The Florida Bar. Applicants are required to demonstrate that they are legally present in the United States.
Posted on: Mon, 10 Mar 2014 14:55:48 +0000
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