For incoming mail to be considered “Legal Mail” it must meet all of the following requirements:
- It must be correspondence from:
- courts and court staff
- attorneys, public defender, prosecuting attorney
- the Indeterminate Sentence Review Board (ISRB)
- Established groups involved in the representation of inmates in judicial proceedings (e.g., American Civil Liberties Union, Disability Rights Washington, legal services groups, etc.)
- the President or Vice President of the United States
- members of the United States Congress
- embassies and consulates
- the United States Department of Justice
- state attorneys general
- governors
- members of the state legislature
- law enforcement officers in their official capacities
- The Prison Rape Elimination Act Unit at Headquarters.
- Incoming legal mail must have the return address on the front of the envelope clearly indicating that it is from one of the above listed sources.
- The front of the envelope must be clearly marked "Legal Mail", "Attorney/Client", or similar designation of the item as legal mail.
- The front of the envelope must be clearly marked "Legal Mail", "Attorney/Client", or similar designation of the item as legal mail.
- Mail readily identifiable as being from a court will be handled as legal mail regardless of whether it has been marked legal mail.