Rule 1.0 - Board of Law Examiners(a)Membership. - The Board of Law Examiners shall consist of seven (7) members of the West Virginia State Bar who shall each be residents of the State of West Virginia or be employed full time within the State of West Virginia, and shall be appointed by the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia. The term of all members shall be seven years, except that the original appointments to the new seven-member Board shall be for terms of one, two, three, four, five, six and seven years, respectively. Term of office shall begin on the first day of January of the appropriate year and end on the thirty-first day of December of the appropriate year. Any vacancy on the Board shall be filled by the Supreme Court of Appeals by appointment for the unexpired term. All members of the Board shall be eligible for reimbursement for travel and other expenses incidental to the performance of their duties. Members of the Board who are not judicial officers shall be considered temporary employees of the Supreme Court of Appeals only for the limited purpose of payment and shall receive W-2 compensation. The limited nature of the classification shall not subject the non-judicial members to any of the rules or requirements set forth in the West Virginia Judicial Personnel System Manual or the Code of Judicial Conduct. Members shall not be conflicted off any case or controversy before any court in West Virginia by virtue of their affiliation with and service on the Board.(b)Removal. - No member may be removed from office except for official misconduct, incompetence, neglect of duty or immorality, provided, that the expiration or revocation of the professional license, or change of residency or employment qualification of a member of the Board shall be cause for his or her removal. (c)Geographic representation. In making appointments to the Board, the Supreme Court of Appeals shall, so far as may be possible and practicable, select the several members from different geographical sections of the State. (d)Prohibited contacts. - Contact regarding bar examination results or admission concerns by telephone or otherwise with individual members of the Board of Law Examiners, with individual Justices of the Supreme Court of Appeals, or with graders of the West Virginia Bar Examination, by an applicant, or his or her representative, is prohibited. (e)Civil immunity. - The Board of Law Examiners and its District Character Committees, their members and employees, shall be absolutely immune from civil suit in the same manner as members of the judiciary in this State for any conduct or communication in the course of their official duties. "Official duties" for the purpose of this Rule includes but is not limited to any conduct or communication dealing with the Bar examination, the character and fitness qualification review and investigation, and any other conduct involved in the licensing of persons seeking to be admitted to the practice of law in West Virginia. (f)Qualified immunity. - Those persons, including any person, firm, or institution, providing records, statements of fact or fact and opinion, or other information regarding an applicant for admission to the practice of law to the Board of Law Examiners, the District Character Committee members, their employees or agents, shall be immune from civil suit for any conduct or communication sought or given in connection with the licensing of persons seeking to be admitted to the practice of law in West Virginia absent a clear and convincing showing that the information provided is defamatory and published by the informant with "actual malice". For purposes of this rule, "actual malice" means the informant provided the defamatory information with (a) knowledge by the informant that the defamatory information was false at the time of its publication or, with (b) willful and reckless disregard of truth by the informant at the time of its publication. For purposes of this rule, "defamatory" means that the statements or information tends to cast shame, contumely and disgrace upon the person referenced by the statement or information in question. (g)Discoverability of investigative materials. - All information provided, documents filed, or testimony given with respect to any investigation or proceeding under these rules shall be privileged and nondiscoverable in any civil suit absent a court order finding that the movant seeking the discovery is (1) the person who is referenced by the alleged defamatory statement or information which is the subject of the discovery request (2) the information, document or testimony is sought to prove an action pursuant to Rule 1(f) only and (3) the movant establishes a prima facie showing to the court of the elements necessary to sustain an action under Rule 1(f) in regard to the document or information sought in the discovery request. Any materials released pursuant to such court order will remain privileged as to any other use. W.V. R. Admis. Prac. Law. 1.0
As amended by order entered June 14, 1995, effective 9/1/1995; by order entered November 26, 2002, effective11/26/2002; amended by order entered February 14, 2019, effective 2/14/2019.