A Miami attorney who opposes the handling of Florida Bar applicants with a history of mental health and substance abuse issues welcomes New York's decision to drop a question for prospective lawyers about their mental health.

New York Chief Judge Janet DiFiore announced Wednesday that bar applicants would no longer be asked if they have "any condition or impairment" including a "mental, emotional, psychiatric, nervous, or behavioral disorder."

A Florida Supreme Court rule policed by the state Board of Bar Examiners treats evidence of mental or emotional instability and drug or alcohol dependency as disqualifying factors for applicants seeking a Florida Bar license.

Attorney Matthew Dietz of the Disability Independence Group Inc. plans to petition to Supreme Court for a rule change to amend the disqualifying factors to help reduce the stigma of mental illness.

He said Thursday he wants "to ensure that the focus is on conduct rather than on ambiguous qualifications such as evidence of emotional instability." For instance, a drunken-driving conviction would open the door to further inquiry as opposed to a diagnosis of bipolar disorder.

The Supreme Court has scheduled arguments April 2 on a different rule change addressing standard and conditional admissions, a confidential status for Florida Bar members with disability issues including mental health.

The subject of mental health in the legal profession has gained increasing attention since a Justice Department settlement with the Louisiana Supreme Court in 2014 on its treatment of lawyers and bar applicants with mental disabilities.

The American Bar Association, law school deans and others have pushed for changes since then as more attention was focused on mental health in the legal profession.

A New York state bar association working group recommended removing the state question because it added unnecessary pressure to students in law school.

In Florida, the state board revised its question about mental health in 2018 after noting the perception that the inquiry "has an unintended effect of discouraging law students or lawyers from seeking counseling or treatment for stress or anxiety."

Beyond perceptions, an Army veteran represented by Dietz sued the board, claiming its admissions process was unfair to applicants with a history of mental health or substance abuse problems and no current disorders. Former Capt. Julius Hobbs, who received psychotherapy after two drunken-driving arrests, reached a confidential settlement and was sworn in as a Florida Bar member two weeks ago.

Dietz suggested Florida should adopt New York's revised question: "Within the past seven years, have you asserted any condition or impairment as a defense, in mitigation, or as an explanation for your conduct in the course of any inquiry, any investigation, or any administrative or judicial proceeding by an educational institution, government agency, professional organization, or licensing authority; or in connection with an employment disciplinary or termination procedure?"

Dietz also noted the difference in the handling of bar applicants and bar members on the same issue.

"You get these standards that are placed on students that are not at all placed on folks in the profession," he said. "To the extent that the same standards were applied to the same folks in the profession, you would have 60% of us out of there just for taking anti-depressants or anti-anxietals."

Read the petition to amend rule: