Lawyers’ Trust Accounts Board Helping to Secure Equal Access to Justice
About PA IOLTA
The core mission of the Pennsylvania Interest on Lawyers’ Trust Accounts (IOLTA) Board is to support the provision of civil legal services to the Commonwealth’s poor and disadvantaged. The IOLTA Board is a not-for-profit organization operating under the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania.
How Does the IOLTA Program Work?
The IOLTA program is simple. Clients and others frequently transfer moneys to attorneys to hold. When the amount is large or if the funds will be held for an extended period of time, attorneys invest them for the benefit of the client. But when the funds are small or expected to be held for a short time, they cannot practically be invested to benefit the client. Pennsylvania Rule of Professional Conduct 1.15 requires attorneys to deposit nominal and short-term fiduciary funds in interest-bearing IOLTA accounts. The attorneys’ banks transfer the interest earned on IOLTA accounts to the Pennsylvania IOLTA Board.
How is the Money Used?
Upon approval of the Supreme Court of PA, the Board makes grants annually to non-profit organizations, law school clinical programs, and administration of justice projects that provide civil legal services free of charge to the poor and disadvantaged.
History of IOLTA in North America
Video Credits: Presented by the ABA Commission on IOLTA and The National Association of IOLTA Programs, with generous support from The Florida Bar Foundation, The Law Foundation of British Columbia, and The Alberta Law Foundation.