Rule 502. Pennsylvania Lawyers Fund for Client Security.

 (a)  General rule. The Supreme Court shall establish a separate fund to be known as the ‘‘Pennsylvania Lawyers Fund for Client Security.’’ The Fund shall consist of such amounts as shall be transferred to the Fund pursuant to this subchapter. The Fund is created by contributions of the members of the Bar to aid in ameliorating the losses caused to clients and others by defalcating members of the Bar acting as attorney or fiduciary. No Claimant or other person shall have any legal interest in such Fund or right to receive any portion thereof, except for discretionary disbursements therefrom directed by the Board or the Supreme Court, all payments from the Fund being a matter of grace and not of right. There shall be no appeal from a decision of the Board. A decision of the Board to grant or deny payment to a Claimant shall not be subject to judicial review by any court. The Supreme Court reserves the right to amend or repeal this subchapter.

 (b)  Additional assessment. Every attorney who is required to pay an annual assessment under Rule 219 (relating to periodic assessment of attorneys; voluntary inactive status) shall pay an additional annual fee of $35.00 for use by the Fund. Such additional annual assessment shall be added to, and collected with and in the same manner as, the basic annual assessment, but the statement mailed by the Administrative Office pursuant to Rule 219 shall separately identify the additional assessment imposed pursuant to this subdivision. All amounts received pursuant to this subdivision shall be credited to the Fund.

 (c)  Transfers to fund. The Administrative Office shall transfer to the Fund all bequests and gifts hereafter made for use by the Fund. All monies or other assets of the Fund shall constitute a trust and shall be held in the name of the Fund, subject to the direction of the Board.

 (d)  Audit. The Board shall annually obtain an independent audit of the Fund by a certified public accountant, and shall file a copy of such audit with the Supreme Court.

   The provisions of this Rule 502(b) adopted April 30, 1982, effective July 1, 1982, 12 Pa.B. 1534; amended April 29, 1983, effective July 1, 1983, 13 Pa.B. 1433; amended December 18, 1987, effective July 1, 1988, 18 Pa.B. 180; amended March 11, 1993, effective May 22, 1993, 23 Pa.B. 2440; amended March 27, 1995, effective immediately, 25 Pa.B. 1404; amended April 25, 1997, effective immediately, 27 Pa.B. 2413; corrected March 31, 2006, 36 Pa.B. 1490; amended June 29, 2007, effective September 14, 2007, 37 Pa.B. 3218; amended April 1, 2008, effective for the 2008-2009 assessment, 38 Pa.B. 1701. Immediately preceding text appears at serial pages (328862) and (328863).