Ep 180: A Deep Dive into the First Comprehensive Study of Regulatory Reforms in Arizona and Utah

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Among the most divisive issues facing the legal profession today is that of revising the rules that regulate law practice – and more specifically the questions of whether to liberalize the rules to allow those who are not licensed lawyers to own law practices or to engage in the practice of law. Two states, Arizona and Utah, have implemented regulatory schemes loosening restrictions on law practice, and other states are considering similar revisions to their rules. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Now, Stanford Law School’s</span> <a href= "https://law.stanford.edu/stanford-center-on-the-legal-profession/"> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Deborah L. Rhode Center on the Legal Profession</span></a> <span style="font-weight: 400;">has published a</span> <a href= "https://www.lawnext.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/SLS-CLP-Regulatory-Reform-REPORTExecSum-9.19.pdf"> <span style="font-weight: 400;">comprehensive study of the data</span></a> <span style="font-weight: 400;">coming out of Arizona and Utah, giving us what may be the first real evidence-based look at this issue. It finds that the reforms in those states are spurring substantial innovation, that they are critical to serving lower-income populations, and that they do not pose any substantial risk of consumer harm. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">On today’s LawNext, we are joined by the two principal authors of that study:</span> <a href= "https://law.stanford.edu/directory/david-freeman-engstrom/"><span style="font-weight: 400;"> David Freeman Engstrom</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">, co-director of the Rhode Center, and</span> <a href= "https://law.stanford.edu/directory/lucy-ricca/"><span style= "font-weight: 400;">Lucy Ricca</span></a><span style= "font-weight: 400;">, director, policy and programs, at the Rhode Center, and formerly executive director of the Utah Office of Legal Services Innovation — the office that oversees the so-called regulatory sandbox in that state. They walk u