§ 1.01 Jurisdiction and Authority of Board; Responsibilities of the Florida Bar Staff

1.01. Jurisdiction and Authority of Board; Responsibilities of the Florida Bar Staff [FN1]

    The board of legal specialization and education (hereinafter the “BLSE”) shall have general jurisdiction over all matters pertaining to the administration of the Florida certification plan, the continuing legal education requirement (CLER) and the basic skills course requirement (BSCR) as outlined in the Rules Regulating The Florida Bar, Chapter 6. Members are appointed by the bar president, for staggered terms and serve at the discretion of the board of governors.

    (a) The BLSE shall have the authority to promulgate rules and policies to accomplish the responsibilities assigned to it as described in the previous section. These rules and policies shall include, but not be limited to, the following:

        (1) administration of the certification program;

        (2) establishment of reasonable and nondiscriminatory standards concerning education, experience, proficiency, and other relevant matters for granting certification to lawyers in defined fields of law under the plan; and

        (3) establishment of procedures for the investigation and consideration of applicant qualifications for certification and awarding certificates of special knowledge, skills, and proficiency based upon recommendations by a certification committee (hereinafter “committee”); and

        (4) establishment of procedures and reasonable standards concerning the approval of continuing legal education, waivers, and other matters for determining compliance with the continuing legal education requirement and the basic skills course requirement.

    (b) Staff shall be responsible for all duties delegated by the BLSE as long as the BLSE retains responsibility for staff decisions. Such duties may include, but not be limited to:

        (1) accepting applications;

        (2) conducting preliminary review of applications;

        (3) contacting candidates for certification for additional information or clarification;

        (4) arranging meeting sites and preparing agenda for the BLSE and committees;

        (5) administering exams; and

        (6) processing CLE credit requests.

    [FN1] Suggested title was added by the Publisher.