RIGHT TO INVENTORY

(a) Appointment; Grounds; Authority. Whenever a lawyer is suspended, disbarred, becomes a delinquent member, abandons a practice, disappears, dies, or suffers an involuntary leave of absence due to military service, catastrophic illness, or injury, and no partner, personal representative, or other responsible party capable of conducting the lawyer’s affairs is known to exist, the appropriate circuit court, on proper proof of the fact, may appoint a lawyer or lawyers to inventory the files of that lawyer (“the subject lawyer”) and to act as necessary to protect the interests of the subject lawyer’s clients.

(b) Maintenance of Confidentiality. Any lawyer appointed to inventory a subject lawyer’s files must not disclose any information contained in the inventoried files without the consent of the client to whom the files relate except as necessary to carry out the order of the court that appointed the lawyer to make the inventory. Lawyers appointed to inventory files may seek a protective order from the appropriate court or take other action necessary to protect confidential information of the subject lawyer’s clients.

(c) Status and Purpose of Inventory Lawyer. Nothing in this rule creates the duties or obligations of a lawyer-client, fiduciary, or other relationship between a lawyer appointed to inventory a subject lawyer’s files and the subject lawyer’s clients except for those duties and obligations specifically set forth in this rule and those duties and obligations inherent in the specific tasks undertaken by the inventory lawyer. The purpose of appointing an inventory lawyer is to avoid prejudice to the subject lawyer’s clients and, as a secondary result, prevent or reduce claims against the subject lawyer.

(d) Designation of Inventory Lawyer. Each member of the bar who practices law in Florida must designate another member of The Florida Bar who has agreed to serve as inventory lawyer under this rule except that no designation is required with respect to any portion of the member’s practice as an employee of a governmental entity. When the services of an inventory lawyer become necessary, an authorized representative of The Florida Bar will contact the designated member and determine the member’s current willingness to serve. The designated member is not under any obligation to serve as inventory lawyer.

(e) Payment of Inventory Lawyer. The Florida Bar may pay a reasonable fee set by the bar’s executive director as approved by the board of governors and within the bar’s annual budget for that year to a lawyer who agrees to conduct an inventory under this rule. Payment by The Florida Bar to an inventory lawyer will be made only with prior approval by the bar, on an application approved by the bar, and under parameters set by the bar.