Board Policy

Access to Attorney Data Policy

1) Access by the Public
The Board of Overseers of the Bar respects the privacy of attorney information, yet also recognizes that the bar and the public benefit from access to such information. The Board’s policy endeavors to balance these competing concerns.

In accord with the limitations set forth below, all attorney roster information maintained by the Board (see proposed Maine Bar Rule 1(g)), shall be made available on the Board’s website and upon request unless prohibited by law for good cause shown. To ensure an appropriate level of privacy, the following attorney information is deemed confidential by the Board:

a) date of birth;
b) business and personal email addresses;
c) current residential address and telephone number;*
d) social security or federal identification number; and
e) location of and account numbers for client funds held by a lawyer.

2) Access by the Maine Supreme Judicial Court
Upon written request by an authorized representative of the Maine Judicial Branch, Board staff will provide all attorney information requested by the Court including, but not limited to, electronic data for the Court’s use in maintaining accurate records in its database.

3) Access by National, State or Local Bar Associations
Upon written request by an authorized representative of a national, state or local bar association, Board staff will provide non-confidential data for the sole purpose of effectuating the association's educational or charitable causes.**

4) Access by Internal Revenue Code Section 501(c)(3) Organizations
Upon written request by an authorized representative of an Internal Revenue Code Section 501(c)(3) organization, Board staff will provide non-confidential data for the sole purpose of supporting legal services.**

This policy shall not be construed to restrict access and distribution of attorney data for stated purposes contained within the Maine Bar Rules.

* The Board will only publish and/or disclose a residential address and phone number if no valid office address and phone number is provided (a home address may be a post office box address).

**The Board reserves the right to, and in most cases will, inspect the actual contents of proposed communication in order to verify that the intended use meets the criteria of this policy. All requests are granted on a one-time basis for the requested purpose. Duplication, re-use, or re-marketing of contact information is prohibited. Requests that meet the guidelines set by this policy will be approved by the Executive Director. When a request deviates from the guidelines contained herein, the Executive Director may disapprove the request or elect to submit the request to the Board for review. A service fee shall be paid by the requesting party unless a fee waiver has been approved by the Executive Director.

Adopted: June 3, 2015