To: Janice M. Rodgers, Director                                    
Departmental Ethics Office

From: Deputy DAEO

I am requesting that you seek a waiver from the prohibition on accepting compensation for the outside practice of law from the Deputy Attorney General for ____________________. Mr. __________ seeks to serve on the __________ County Panel of Arbitrators and receive compensation.

Under California law, arbitration panels must be composed of three members of the bar. The _________ Bar Association, of which Mr. _______ is a member, submits a list of attorneys to the court which selects individuals to serve on the panels. The attorneys serve for two years, sitting each year for two weeks for which they receive $1,320 per week from the county. All matters before the arbitration panel are civil in nature and do not involve the United States. In addition, Mr. _______ will take annual leave for the two weeks he is serving on the panel.

As you know, Department employees are prohibited, without a waiver from the Deputy Attorney General, from engaging in the outside practice of law unless it is uncompensated and in the nature of community service. Since Mr. ________ was selected to serve on the panel because he is an attorney, we are seeking a waiver of the prohibition on engaging in the outside practice of law for compensation. We believe that service as an arbitrator is in the nature of community service and many of our employees, both attorneys and non-attorneys, currently serve as arbitrators.
 

Request to Engage in the Outside Practice
of Law for Compensation

To: Janice M. Rodgers, Director                                    
Departmental Ethics Office

From: Deputy DAEO

I am requesting that you seek a waiver from the prohibition on accepting compensation for the outside practice of law from the Deputy Attorney General for prospective special government employee ____________________.

The __________ Division seeks to hire Mr. ____________, an attorney in private practice, as a special government employee to handle the ______________ matter. Mr. ________ is needed to advise and lead the staff in this highly complex litigation. The division does not expect to require Mr. ___________'s services for more than 130 days. Therefore, he seeks to maintain a limited private practice which does not involve any matters in which the Department has an interest.

The Department's regulation on outside employment generally prohibits the outside practice of law unless it is uncompensated and in the nature of community service, or on behalf of the employee, his spouse, parents or children. However, 5 C.F.R. § 3801.106(b)(2) allows for a waiver of these restrictions where they will cause undue personal or family hardship, unduly prohibit an employee from completing a professional obligation entered into prior to Government service, or unduly restrict the Department from securing necessary and uniquely specialized services.

As the Deputy Designated Agency Ethics Official, I ask that you seek this waiver from the Deputy Attorney General to allow Mr. ____________ to continue with his private practice while serving as a special government employee for the Department.