Philadelphia Bar Association Chancellor Rochelle M. Fedullo issued the following statement today on behalf of association membership:
We are delighted with the recent adoption of a change to Rule 202 of the Pennsylvania Bar Admission Rules giving “Dreamers,” those with Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) status, eligibility for bar admission. We commend the Pennsylvania Board of Law Examiners for proposing, and the Pennsylvania Supreme Court for adopting this change, which clarifies that Pennsylvania is one of 10 states that has opted out of federal restrictions which would serve to prohibit granting law licenses to those with DACA status.
We are proud that our board of governors unanimously adopted a resolution in December 2016 advocating that the Pennsylvania Supreme Court and Pennsylvania Board of Law Examiners provide for eligibility for bar admission without regard to immigration status. We thank and congratulate the ACLU of Pennsylvania for its strong advocacy, the fruits of which are that the dream of practicing law can now be a reality for Dreamers in Pennsylvania.
