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Huzzie v. State

Defendant's probation officer did not engage in the unauthorized practice of law by preparing and filing a probation revocation petition.

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Latoya Huzzie pled nolo contendere to shoplifting and was sentenced to 12 months probation. When Huzzie violated the terms of her probation, her probation officer, Jacqueline Barnes, filed a petition for revocation of probation. Huzzie moved to dismiss the petition, asserting that it was null and void. According to Huzzie, Barnes—an employee of a private corporation—was engaging in the unauthorized practice of law and, thus, exceeded the scope of her employment in filing the revocation petition. The trial court denied Huzzie’s motion to dismiss, and she appealed. For reasons that follow, we affirm.

In Leverette v. State,1 we recently addressed whether a probation officer who filed a petition seeking revocation or modification of probation was engaged in the unauthorized practice of law. We found the officer was not. We noted that a “probation officer is a public official employed by the State of Georgia . . . As such, a probation officer acts as a State agent in the preparation and filing of a petition for revocation of . . . probation.”2 Because a probation officer is charged with handling matters relating to probation, we concluded that such officer is essentially a party to the case and, thus, may file petitions in court relating to that case without violating the prohibition against the unauthorized practice of law.3

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