Law panel to meet in S.C.

National committee proposes uniformity in codes

By RODDIE A. BURRIS

rburris@thestate.com

In 1932, an obscure set of state “lawmakers” helped make it illegal across the country to own most machine guns.

Decades later, that same group, the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws, helped smooth the way to shop on the Internet and make electronic purchases.

This week and next, more than 350 of the commissioners — all lawyers, including state and federal judges, law professors and other legal types — will meet at Hilton Head Island.

The members, who come from all states, the District of Columbia and U.S. territories, have drafted several proposals that seek to iron out differences among state laws. If accepted, they go to state legislatures for possible adoption.

Since 1892, the commission has drafted 250 proposals it thinks should be adopted.

But state legislatures can be slow to act.

“We tend to take the long view most of the time,” said Katie Robinson, the group’s communications director. “We don’t usually think in terms of years, we think in terms of decades.”

Of 86 approved proposals the commission still wants adopted, 15 are on the books in at least 50 states or territories, she said; another 14 have been adopted by at least 40 states.

Many ideas are built on the concept of reciprocity, where one state recognizes and upholds the law of others. This year, for instance, the commission is expected to consider establishing guidelines to help courts identify and prevent the abduction of children whose families are going through custody disputes and divorces.

Another is related to last year’s Gulf Coast hurricanes.

The Uniform Emergency Volunteer Healthcare Services Act would allow out-of-state medical professionals from South Carolina, for instance, to practice in areas afflicted by Katrina and Rita using their existing state licenses. The act also protects these medics from civil liability while doing their work.

“The idea is you don’t want to have to revisit the apple (from state to state) if it’s something that ought to be pretty standard procedure,” said Stephen T. Draffin, director of the South Carolina Legislative Council and a commission member.

Proposals are sometimes years in the making, Draffin said. They are introduced, debated, redrafted and reviewed in at least two annual meetings.

At the meetings, which this year run July 7-14, “There’s a very lively debate on the substance of it,” Draffin said. “Lawmakers know the proposals will be well vetted.”

The commission is mainly state supported, though the American Bar Association, the American Law Institute and foundations also contribute.

States pay dues to the commission based on population and cover travel for commissioners, who are not paid. In the last budget year, South Carolina paid dues totaling $28,000.

South Carolina has three members on the commission who are appointed by the governor. Other S.C. members are Peden B. McLeod, a Walterboro attorney, who also serves as liaison to the General Assembly, and Thomas S. Linton of Columbia, who is a Legislative Council retiree.

South Carolina joined the commission in 1895 and has adopted 50 to 60 of the commission’s proposals into law.

McLeod makes a report to S.C. lawmakers each year on the commission’s proposals. He also works with lawmakers to get the commission’s proposals passed.

“The reality of it is that it’s difficult getting laws passed,” said Rep. Ben A. Hagood Jr., R-Charleston, an attorney who says the commission’s work is “valuable.”

Many commission proposals deal with highly technical acts, and their work is an important part of the national legal system, Hagood said.

“But there are hurdles to get over, and if you’re talking about 50 states, you’re talking about a lot of hurdles.”

When the commission drafted laws back in the 1930s, limiting ownership of machine guns, racketeering and gangsters — Al Capone, Bonnie and Clyde and others — were a problem. The S.C. Legislature passed that proposal in 1934.

The Electronic Transactions Act, approved by the General Assembly in 1999, removed barriers to electronic commerce by giving electronic records and signatures the legal equivalence of hand-signed documents.

Most recently, in 2004, the General Assembly adopted the Athlete Agents Act, which regulates the activity of agents in dealing with student athletes and educational institutions.

Reach Burris at (803) 771-8398.