House Counsel License (Rule 10)

Under Rule 10 of the Rules for Admission to the Bar, a lawyer licensed in another jurisdiction who accepts employment as house counsel in Minnesota may apply for a limited house counsel license.

Requirements

You must meet the following minimum requirements to apply under Rule 10:

• Have a JD from an ABA-approved law school
• Provide evidence of having engaged in the practice of law as defined in Rule 7A in at least 36 months of the 60 months immediately preceding the application
• Provide an affidavit from an officer, director, or general counsel of your employer attesting to the following:
• Your date of employment
• Verification that you are employed as house counsel solely for that employer
• Verification that you are a person of good character
• Verification that the nature of the employment meets the requirements of Rule 10B(1)
• Be licensed to practice law in another state or jurisdiction
• Be in good standing in each jurisdiction in which you are licensed to practice law
• Receive a good character and fitness recommendation from the Minnesota Board of Law Examiners
• Meet Rule 4 General Requirements for Admission
• Provide required documents from each jurisdiction in which you are licensed to practice law, as required by Rule 4D

See Rule 10 for additional guidance.

Limitations

• Your house counsel license is limited to the representation of your employer (see Rule 10D for pro bono exception)
• Your house counsel license expires upon the termination of your employment with the corporation at which you were employed when you were granted a Rule 10 license

Apply

To apply you must:

1. Register using the online Minnesota Bar Application Registration form, and

2. Complete and send in a signed Minnesota Bar Application along with proper fees and any supplemental information required by the application.

Click here to begin the application process.

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