Apparently helping people help themselves is sometimes illegal.
At least that's what a Dallas federal judge thinks. He recently banned software company Parsons Technology from distributing consumer self-help legal software, on the grounds that it amounts to unauthorized practice of the law.
US District Judge Barefoot Sanders issued a summary judgment on 22 January preventing Parsons from distributing future copies of Quicken Family Lawyer and Quicken Family Lawyer 99. The decision was first reported on Monday.
The Parsons products offer dozens of legal forms on matters like employment agreements, real estate leases, and marital agreements. The Unauthorized Practice of Law Committee, an organization of six lawyers appointed by the Texas supreme court, argued before court that Parsons was violating the state's statute barring the unauthorized practice of law.
The Parsons software helps users fill out legal forms by asking questions in plain English, instead of legalese. Parsons argued that it can't be violating the statute, because software can't be construed as a person practicing law. Furthermore, Parsons lawyers argued that the statute would infringe on the company's right to free speech under the Texas and US constitutions.
Parsons said it will appeal the decision.
Nolo Press, a groundbreaking publisher of legal self-help books based in Berkeley, California, also faces an investigation by the UPLC. The company's Texas-based attorney, Pete Kennedy, has been following the Parsons case closely.
"I'm concerned that opinions labeling self-help legal software as a 'cyber lawyer' over-simplifies and distorts the way the publications are used by individuals," Kennedy said. "People who buy software publications realize that they're not hiring a lawyer."
Nolo has sued the Texas supreme court to obtain information about who is backing the UPLC and whether the organization is looking out for lawyers' interests.
"The UPLC seems hellbent on trying to eradicate legal self-help publications," Kennedy said.
A representative for the UPLC, based in Dallas, couldn't immediately be reached for comment.
