Current through Register Vol. 35, No. 18, September 24, 2024
A. An applicant
shall be licensed to practice in New Mexico as an attorney and shall declare
intent to practice as an attorney in public service employment.
B. Prior to submitting an application to the
public service law loan repayment program, an applicant shall apply to all
available legal education loan repayment programs offered by the applicant's
law school for which the applicant qualifies.
C. An applicant who intends to practice as an
attorney in a public service employment position in which the annual salary
exceeds an amount to be determined by the department is not eligible for
participation.
D. Prior to
receiving a loan repayment award, the applicant shall file with the department:
(1) a declaration of intent to practice as an
attorney in public service employment;
(2) proof of prior application to all legal
education loan repayment programs offered by the applicant's law school for
which the applicant qualifies; and
(3) documentation that includes the
applicant's total legal education debt, salary, any amounts received by the
applicant from other law loan repayment programs and other sources of income
deemed by the department as appropriate for consideration; provided that the
applicant shall not be required to disclose amounts of income from military
service.
E. Award
criteria shall provide that:
(1) preference in
making awards shall be to applicants who:
(a)
have the greatest financial need based on legal education indebtedness and
salary;
(b) work in public service
employment that has the lowest salaries;
(c) work in public service employment in underserved
areas of New Mexico that are in greatest need of attorneys practicing in public
service employment; and
(d) have
graduated from the university of New Mexico school of law.
(2) an applicant's employment as an attorney
in public service employment prior to participation in the public service law
loan repayment program shall not count as time spent toward the minimum
three-year period of service requirement pursuant to the contract between the
participating attorney and the department acting on behalf of the
state;
(3) award amounts are
dependent upon the applicant's total legal education debt, salary and other
sources of income, other than income from military service, deemed by the
department as appropriate for consideration;
(4) award amounts may be modified based upon
available funding or other special circumstances;
(5) an award shall not exceed the total legal
education debt of any participant; and
(6) award amounts shall be reduced by the sum
of the total award amounts received by the participant from other legal
education loan repayments programs.
F. The following legal education debts are
not eligible for repayment pursuant to the public service law loan repayment
program:
(1) amounts incurred as a result of
participation in state or law school loan-for-service programs or other state
or law school programs whose purposes state that service be provided in
exchange for financial assistance;
(2) scholarships that have a service
component or obligation;
(3)
personal loans from relatives or friends; and
(4) loans that exceed individual standard
school expense levels;
(5) an award
determination may be appealed to the secretary of higher education.
