Editing Practice of law (section)

====Enforcement====
Criminal laws and enforcement of "Unauthorized Practice of Law (UPL)" statutes is the organized bar's preferred method. In Florida, the unauthorized practice of law is a third degree felony,<ref>[http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&Search_String=&URL=0400-0499/0454/Sections/0454.23.html §454.23 Fla. Stat.] (2016)("Any person not licensed or otherwise authorized to practice law in this state who practices law in this state or holds himself or herself out to the public as qualified to practice law in this state ... commits a felony of the third degree."</ref> which is punishable by up to six months in prison<ref>[http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&Search_String=&URL=0700-0799/0775/Sections/0775.082.html §775.082(3)(e) Fla. Stat.](2016)</ref> and $5000 in fines.<ref>[http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&Search_String=&URL=0700-0799/0775/Sections/0775.083.html §775.083(1)(c) Fla. Stat.] (2016)</ref> [[New Jersey]] has a law which makes it a "[[Disorderly conduct|disorderly person]]s offense" to knowingly to engage in the unauthorized practice of law, and a "crime in the fourth degree" to commit UPL if one (a) creates a false impression that one is a lawyer; (b) derives a benefit from UPL, or (c) causes an injury by UPL.<ref name="Federalist"/>{{Cite NJSA|title=2C|chapter=21|section=22|citeonly=true}} In a 2015 survey by the American Bar Association, Florida had the largest budget—$1.8 million—nationwide for prosecuting the unauthorized practice of law.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Draper|first1=Lindsay|title=2015 Survey of Unlicensed Practice of Law Committees|url=http://www.americanbar.org/content/dam/aba/administrative/professional_responsibility/2015_upl_report_final.authcheckdam.pdf|publisher=American Bar Association|access-date=17 December 2016|date=September 2015|quote=The Florida Bar continues to lead the country in funding UPL enforcement, spending approximately $1.8 million annually.}}</ref>

The state has interest in protecting the public from having unqualified persons hold themselves out as licensed professionals, but the existence of laws against unauthorized practice of itself does not guarantee that unlicensed professionals will be detected and those laws enforced.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Hogan |first1=Daniel B. |title=The effectiveness of licensing: History, evidence, and recommendations. |journal=Law and Human Behavior |date=1983 |volume=7 |issue=2–3 |pages=117–138 |doi=10.1007/BF01044517|s2cid=112414536 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Rhode |first1=Deborah L. |title=The Delivery of Legal Services by Non-Lawyers |journal=Georgetown Journal of Legal Ethics |date=1990 |volume=4 |page=209}}</ref>