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Apply for an Exemption

Exemptions must be requested by the attorney and approved by the IOLTA Board.

Pennsylvania is a fund-specific state for purposes of IOLTA compliance.  The obligation to utilize a Pennsylvania-designated IOLTA account or to request a timed exemption under 204 Pa Code § 109(d) is triggered by the receipt of Pa. R.P.C. 1.15 Qualified Funds as the result of activities regulated as the practice of law in Pennsylvania.  

An exemption request must be submitted in writing with supporting documentation to the attention of the IOLTA Board’s Executive Director by email to [email protected] or to the IOLTA Board’s mailing address:  PA IOLTA Board, P.O. Box 62445, Harrisburg, PA 17106-2445.

 

To Request an Exemption

Send a written request to the IOLTA Board’s executive director at [email protected].

Identify the exemption category for which you are applying and explain why you qualify.

For a low balance exemption or excessive service charges exemption, you must include the bank statements for your current IOLTA account for the last twelve months.

Exclusions

If you do not receive Pa. R.P.C. 1.15 Qualified Funds as the result of activities regulated as the practice of law in Pennsylvania, you are excluded from the requirement to maintain a Pennsylvania IOLTA Account and do not need to request a timed exemption. Examples include full time employment in a corporate capacity, by local, state or federal government, as a law clerk, professor, or as a member of the judiciary.

If An Exemption is Granted

All other duties and responsibilities outlined in Pa.R.P.C. 1.15 apply to the account even if the attorney has been granted an exemption from maintaining it as an IOLTA account.

All Qualified Funds handled by the attorney that would otherwise be required to be placed in a Pennsylvania-designated IOLTA account must be deposited in a separate non-interest bearing trust account that is configured to submit overdraft reports in accordance with Pa. R.D.E. 221.

Exemptions are valid for three years. If the reason for the exemption still exists at the end of three years, the attorney must reapply for another three-year exemption six months prior to the expiration.

If the circumstances that formed the basis for the exemption change within the three year period, the lawyer must notify the IOLTA Board and comply with the requirement to deposit Qualified Funds in an IOLTA account.