The State Bar of California is California's official attorney licensing agency. It is responsible for managing the admission of lawyers to the practice of law, investigating complaints of professional misconduct, prescribing appropriate discipline, accepting attorney-member fees, and financially distributing sums paid through attorney trust accounts to fund nonprofit legal entities. It is directly responsible to the
Supreme Court of California
The Supreme Court of California is the highest and final court of appeals in the courts of the U.S. state of California. It is headquartered in San Francisco at the Earl Warren Building, but it regularly holds sessions in Los Angeles and Sacra ...
, however, its Trustees are now appointed by the Supreme Court, the California Legislature, and Governor of California. All attorney admissions are issued as recommendations of the State Bar, which are then routinely ratified by the Supreme Court. Attorney discipline is handled by the State Bar Office of Chief Trial Counsel, which acts as prosecutor before the
State Bar Court of California.
The State Bar was legally established on July 29, 1927, when the State Bar Act went into effect.
["Introductory: The Genesis and Development of the State Bar", in the ''Proceedings of the First Annual Meeting of the State Bar of California'' (San Francisco: The Recorder Printing and Publishing Co., 1929), xvi.] The State Bar of California is the largest in the United States, with over 286,000 living members as of December 2022, of whom nearly 197,000 are on active status.
It is headquartered in
San Francisco
San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...
, with a branch office in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
.
![180howardstreet](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bf/180howardstreet.jpg)
At its inception, the State Bar was a "unified" bar in which disciplinary functions and more traditional "bar association" functions were joined into one entity. In 2018-2019, the State Bar was split into two entities: the State Bar of California became a standalone Government entity with legal enforcement via the State Bar Court.
The new entity split off from the State Bar of California became the
California Lawyers Association
The California Lawyers Association (CLA) is a statewide, voluntary bar association for California legal professionals, headquartered in Sacramento.
CLA was established in 2018, as result of Senate Bill 36., which separated the voluntary educati ...
(CLA) and took over certain functions such as education, lobbying, and annual meetings. Membership in the CLA is voluntary. Membership in the State Bar of California is mandatory for most practicing lawyers in California (the only exceptions being for very specific instances). The CLA is an NGO (Non-Governmental Organization).
History
The State Bar's predecessor was a voluntary state bar association known as the California Bar Association.
The leader of the effort to establish an integrated (official) bar was
Judge Jeremiah F. Sullivan, who first proposed the concept at the CBA's
Santa Barbara convention in September 1917, and provided the CBA with a copy of a
Quebec
Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...
statute as a model.
It took almost ten years to establish an integrated bar in California.
Sullivan, who was also the President of the Bar Association of San Francisco, organized BASF committees to draft and propose appropriate legislation.
Both BASF-drafted bills died in the
California Legislature
The California State Legislature is a bicameral state legislature consisting of a lower house, the California State Assembly, with 80 members; and an upper house, the California State Senate, with 40 members. Both houses of the Legisla ...
, in 1919 and 1921.
In 1922, Sullivan finally persuaded the CBA to take action on his proposal; the CBA drafted a new bill, lobbied lawyers and legislators around the state for their support, and persuaded the Legislature to pass the bill in 1925.
That bill died by Governor
Friend Richardson
Friend William Richardson (born William Richardson; December 1, 1865September 6, 1943) was an American newspaper publisher and politician, most famous for supporting a 1923 gun control bill aimed at Chinese and Latinos. A member of the Progressiv ...
's
pocket veto.
After two more years of lobbying, the CBA tried again.
Governor
C. C. Young
Clement Calhoun Young (April 28, 1869 – December 24, 1947) was an American educator and politician who was affiliated with the original Progressive Party and later the Republican Party. He was elected to five consecutive terms in the Californ ...
signed the State Bar Act into law on March 16, 1927.
On May 12, 1927, the Supreme Court of California appointed the State Bar Commission, which in turn established the State Bar of California as an operating entity with offices at 519 California Street in San Francisco on July 30, 1927.
The State Bar immediately mailed out registration forms (demanding a $3 preorganization fee as authorized by the Act) to all California attorneys.
Identification numbers were assigned to each attorney as they registered; notably, State Bar Number 1 went to Chief Justice
William H. Waste
William Harrison Waste (October 31, 1868 – June 6, 1940) was the 21st Chief Justice of California.
Biography
Born near Chico, California, Chico, California, Waste was educated at Los Angeles High School, graduating in 1887. He graduated fro ...
.
By October 1, 1927, 7,872 lawyers had registered.
These lawyers then voted by mail for the State Bar's first Board of Governors.
On November 17, the State Bar held a preorganization dinner at the
Palace Hotel in San Francisco, followed by the formal organization meeting the next day.
By the time the dinner started, 9,602 lawyers had registered.
The next morning, during the State Bar's organization meeting, the CBA yielded to its successor by winding up its affairs and ending its corporate existence.
Integrated bar
In 2018-2019, California joined the majority of
American states that operate an
integrated (mandatory) bar, in which the statewide bar association is integrated with the
judiciary
The judiciary (also known as the judicial system, judicature, judicial branch, judiciative branch, and court or judiciary system) is the system of courts that adjudicates legal disputes/disagreements and interprets, defends, and applies the law ...
and active membership therein is required in order to practice law. Article 6, Section 9 of the
California Constitution
The Constitution of California ( es, Constitución de California) is the primary organizing law for the U.S. state of California, describing the duties, powers, structures and functions of the government of California. California's original co ...
states:
The State Bar acts as the administrative arm of the California Supreme Court in matters involving the admission, regulation, and discipline of attorneys. Its structure, responsibilities and powers are elaborated in the State Bar Act, Sections 6000–6238 of the Business and Professions Code, as well as its own Rules of the State Bar of California and certain portions of the California Rules of Court.
Generally, practicing law in the state of California without being a licensee of the State Bar is the crime of unauthorized practice of law. There are limited exceptions such as for
patent attorney
A patent attorney is an attorney who has the specialized qualifications necessary for representing clients in obtaining patents and acting in all matters and procedures relating to patent law and practice, such as filing patent applications and op ...
s who restrict their practice to the prosecution of patent applications (i.e., the process of obtaining a patent before the
United States Patent and Trademark Office
The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is an agency in the U.S. Department of Commerce that serves as the national patent office and trademark registration authority for the United States. The USPTO's headquarters are in Alexa ...
); attorneys who practice areas of law exclusively regulated by the federal government (such as immigration) under a
U.S. Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...
decision in 1963 that prohibited states from restricting the practice of exclusively federal areas of law; and attorneys from other states who have applied to the California courts for temporary admission ''
pro hac vice
In the legal field, ''pro hac vice'' () is a practice in common law jurisdictions whereby a lawyer who has not been admitted to practice in a certain jurisdiction is allowed to participate in a particular case in that jurisdiction. Although ''pro ...
'' to work on a single California case in collaboration with a licensee of the State Bar. Other exceptions include provisions for members of the military stationed with their spouses in California, registered in-house counsel, and registered legal aid attorneys.
Notably, the State Bar's Board of Trustees is no longer elected by the state's attorneys. Instead, the Trustees are now appointed by the Supreme Court of California, the Governor of California and members of the California Legislature.
Divestment of voluntary bar functions
On October 2, 2017, Governor
Jerry Brown
Edmund Gerald Brown Jr. (born April 7, 1938) is an American lawyer, author, and politician who served as the 34th and 39th governor of California from 1975 to 1983 and 2011 to 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, he was elected Secretary of S ...
signed into law Senate Bill 36. SB 36, sponsored by
Hannah-Beth Jackson
Hannah-Beth Jackson (born May 19, 1950) is an American politician who served in the California State Senate from 2012 to 2020. A Democrat, she represented the 19th Senate District, encompassing Santa Barbara County and most of Ventura County.
J ...
(D-Santa Barbara) which mandated the separation of the sections of the State Bar into a new 501(c)(6) entity. This Association was designed to house the 16 sections of the State Bar of California, as well as the California Young Lawyers Association. The sections provide low-cost continuing education for attorneys, which the State Bar of California requires. The sections also work with legislators to interpret, amend, and propose legislation. While lawyers are required to pay dues to the State Bar of California to practice law in the state, membership within the sections is voluntary. SB 36 helped formalize the separation, reauthorized mandatory dues for two years, and reduced the number of lawyers on the State Bar of California's Board of Trustees. The separation became official on January 1, 2018 with the launch of the California Lawyers Association.
The State Bar of California no longer performs educational or lobbying functions. Instead, its statutory mission involves activities to protect the public, increase access to legal services, and increase diversity in the legal profession. It administers the biannual bar examination for law students, processes complaints about attorney misconduct and the unauthorized practice of law, disciplines attorneys, and works with the California Supreme Court to consider and draft the Rules of Professional Conduct by which all California lawyers must conduct themselves. It collects and distributes legal aid funds and conducts an attorney census to publish demographics reports. It collects and maintains attorney records and collects licensing fees, and conducts limited services for licensees related to its current mission.
Membership
Fee structure
The State Bar of California is one of a small number of State Bars whose member fee structure must be ratified annually by both the
legislature
A legislature is an assembly with the authority to make law
Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its p ...
and the
governor
A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...
. Without such annual reauthorization, it can charge California lawyers only $77 per year.
In 1990, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in ''
Keller v. State Bar of California
''Keller v. State Bar of California'', 496 U.S. 1 (1990), was a case in which the Supreme Court of the United States held that attorneys who are required to be members of a state bar association have a First Amendment right to refrain from subsidi ...
'' that attorneys who are required to be members of a state bar association have a First Amendment right to refrain from subsidizing the organization's political or ideological activities as was the case with the California State Bar's activities.
In October 1997, Governor
Pete Wilson
Peter Barton Wilson (born August 23, 1933) is an American attorney and politician who served as the 36th governor of California from 1991 to 1999. A member of the Republican Party, he also served as a United States senator from California bet ...
vetoed the fee authorization bill for that year. He pointed out that California's bar had the highest annual fee in the country at $478. He also stated that the State Bar had become bloated and inefficient and criticized its Conference of Delegates for taking positions on divisive political issues like
abortion
Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. An abortion that occurs without intervention is known as a miscarriage or "spontaneous abortion"; these occur in approximately 30% to 40% of pregn ...
. The State Bar's political and lobbying activities, combined with the compulsory nature of its dues, had already resulted in a U.S. Supreme Court case in which the State Bar was forced to allow attorneys to opt out of paying dues to support positions that they found abhorrent, ''
Keller v. State Bar of California
''Keller v. State Bar of California'', 496 U.S. 1 (1990), was a case in which the Supreme Court of the United States held that attorneys who are required to be members of a state bar association have a First Amendment right to refrain from subsidi ...
'', .
As a result, the State Bar was forced to lay off 500 of its 700 personnel on June 26, 1998. For six months, the State Bar's attorney disciplinary system was nonfunctional. On December 3, 1998, the Supreme Court of California unanimously held that it had the power to impose an emergency annual fee of $171.44 on all California lawyers to fund the attorney disciplinary system. See ''In re Attorney Disciplinary System''
19 Cal. 4th 582(1998). By then, the backlog of unprocessed complaints had soared to 6,000.
On September 7, 1999, Governor
Gray Davis signed a bill that set the annual fee for the State Bar at $395, thus ending the funding crisis. Since then, the State Bar has undertaken several reforms to improve the efficiency of its operations. In 2002, the State Bar split off the Conference of Delegates into a separate volunteer organization, now known as the Conference of California Bar Associations.
On October 11, 2009, Governor
Arnold Schwarzenegger
Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger (born July 30, 1947) is an Austrian and American actor, film producer, businessman, retired professional bodybuilder and politician who served as the 38th governor of California between 2003 and 2011. ''Time'' ...
vetoed the fee authorization bill for 2010. In his veto message accompanying the return of the unsigned bill to the Legislature, he stated that just as in 1997, the State Bar had again become inefficient, scandal-ridden, and excessively politicized.
In 2015 and 2016, the California State Auditor's Office found that the State Bar was inefficient and had failed to properly engage with stakeholders. The State Auditor's Office also determined that the State Bar's financial reporting lacked transparency and had obscured a growing shortfall in its Client Security Fund, masking a high volume of claims that the State Bar expected the fund would be required to pay. Audits also found that the State Bar had created an unnecessary nonprofit organization and then used State Bar funds to cover the nonprofit's financial losses.
Another punitive lapse occurred in 2016, when the State Legislature allowed its session to end without enacting a bill authorizing the bar to collect lawyer fees in 2017.
In 2018, however, the State Bar "split" into two entities, with a newly appointee-only Board of Trustees. In late 2019, the State Legislature approved the first licensing fee increase for the State Bar in over 20 years. Annual licensing fees for active attorneys now total $510.00.
Admissions criteria
The task of deciding whom to admit to the bar is performed by the Committee of Bar Examiners and the Office of Admissions under procedures set out in the State Bar Act.
Prior to law schools in the U.S., the only way to become an attorney was to "read" for the law. Usually this was done by reading
Blackstone's ''
Commentaries on the Laws of England
The ''Commentaries on the Laws of England'' are an influential 18th-century treatise on the common law of England by Sir William Blackstone, originally published by the Clarendon Press at Oxford, 1765–1770. The work is divided into four volume ...
'' as a textbook, and by interning for a judge or a lawyer for a prescribed period. The Bar candidate would then be questioned by a panel of court justices and accepted or rejected as an officer of the court. If accepted, the candidate was sworn into the Bar.
California requires two years of pre-legal education before beginning the study of law. Once the pre-legal education is met, California has different paths to become a licensed attorney:
# Attending a law school accredited by the
American Bar Association
The American Bar Association (ABA) is a voluntary bar association of lawyers and law students, which is not specific to any jurisdiction in the United States. Founded in 1878, the ABA's most important stated activities are the setting of acad ...
or approved by the Committee of Bar Examiners and passing the California Bar Examination (bar exam).
# Study law for at least four years by:
#: * Attending a law school authorized by the State of California to award professional degrees that is not accredited by the ABA or approved by the State Bar of California. (including
online law schools) and pass the bar exam, or
#: * Participating in an approved course of study in a law office or the chambers of a judge and pass the bar exam. ("Law Office Study Program"; see below.)
# Already being licensed in another state in the United States and taking the California bar exam. Lawyers who are already licensed (and have been active for four or more years) in another jurisdiction may be able to waive out of taking the
Multistate Bar Examination
In the United States, those seeking to become lawyers must normally pass a bar examination before they can be admitted to the bar and become licensed to practice law. Bar exams are administered by states or territories, generally by agencies under ...
portion of the bar exam.
Regardless of the path one takes to becoming a licensed attorney, most bar applicants take a special private preparation course for the bar exam immediately following their graduation from law school.
There is no citizenship requirement for admission to the California bar exam; a person can be a citizen of any country and be admitted to practice in California. No particular type of visa, including a
green card
A green card, known officially as a permanent resident card, is an identity document which shows that a person has permanent residency in the United States. ("The term 'lawfully admitted for permanent residence' means the status of having been ...
, is required for
admission to the bar. However, applicants must have a
Social Security Number
In the United States, a Social Security number (SSN) is a nine-digit number issued to U.S. citizens, permanent residents, and temporary (working) residents under section 205(c)(2) of the Social Security Act, codified as . The number is issued to ...
to apply. Applicants are able to petition for an exception to the latter rule.
Prospective applicants must also pass the
Multistate Professional Responsibility Examination
The Multistate Professional Responsibility Examination (MPRE) is a 120-minute, 60-question, multiple-choice examination designed to measure the knowledge and understanding of established standards related to a lawyer's professional conduct. It i ...
and undergo a background check to determine if the applicant has the "
good moral character
Good moral character is an ideal state of a person's beliefs and values that is considered most beneficial to society.
In United States law, good moral character can be assessed through the requirement of virtuous acts or by principally evaluatin ...
" necessary to practice law in California. A prospective applicant must receive a "positive determination" as to the inquiry on their "moral character" in addition to satisfying all other educational requirements and exam passages to be granted a license to practice law in California.
Examination routes
Accredited law school study
California is one of several states that allow study at law schools accredited by the American Bar Association and as well as other law schools. Through its Committee of Bar Examiners (CBE), the State Bar accredits certain California law schools. Study at registered unaccredited law schools, including full-time online law schools, is also allowed. The majority of prospective lawyers studying for the California Bar attend law schools accredited by the ABA or approved by the CBE. Once they receive their J.D. degree from these schools they are eligible to take the bar exam.
Unaccredited law school study
Students may choose to become a licensed attorney through law schools that are not accredited by the ABA or approved by the State Bar of California Committee of Bar Examiners. Students attending these schools must also complete the First-Year Law Students' Examination (FYLSE, popularly known as the "Baby Bar Examination") before receiving credit for their law study.
Students should pass the FYLSE within three administrations after first becoming eligible to take the examination (which usually occurs upon completion of the first year of law study) in order to receive credit for law study undertaken up to the point of passage. It is possible for a student to pass the test after the first three administrations, but such a student will receive credit only for their first year of law study; no courses beyond the first year will be credited if a student takes more law school classes and passes the Baby Bar thereafter.
Law Office Study Program
The California State Bar Law Office Study Program allows California residents to become California attorneys without graduating from college or law school, assuming they meet basic pre-legal educational requirements. (candidates without a college degree may take and pass the
College Level Examination Program
The College Level Examination Program is a group of standardized tests created and administered by the College Board. These tests assess college-level knowledge in thirty-six subject areas and provide a mechanism for earning college credits w ...
(CLEP).) The Bar candidate must study under a judge or lawyer for four years and must also pass the Baby Bar within three administrations after first becoming eligible to take the examination. They are then eligible to take the California Bar Examination.
Out-of-state attorney examination
Persons already licensed as attorneys in other states may take the California Bar. Provided they have already taken the Multistate Bar Examination (MBE), they may omit that portion of the California Bar Examination. The attorneys opting to omit the MBE must have four years of being in good standing in their local jurisdictions. Attorneys without the required years of being in good standing take the General Examination, like most other applicants.
Examination
California's bar exam is administered twice annually, in February and July. It is widely considered one of the most difficult
bar examination
A bar examination is an examination administered by the bar association of a jurisdiction that a lawyer must pass in order to be admitted to the bar of that jurisdiction.
Australia
Administering bar exams is the responsibility of the bar associ ...
s in the United States.
[Anna Oberthur, "Raising the Bar and the Meaning of Success: California's Notorious Legal Exam Becomes a Crossroads Where Failure Can Lead to Happiness," ''San Francisco Daily Journal'', 23 May 2006, 1.][Howard Mintz, "Crunch time for law students: Would-be lawyers prep for one of nation's toughest exams," ''San Jose Mercury News'', 7 July 2007, 1A.] Several prominent attorneys and politicians have either never passed, or had difficulty passing, the California Bar Exam. Significant among these are former
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
Mayor
Antonio Villaraigosa
Antonio Ramón Villaraigosa (; né Villar Jr.; born January 23, 1953) is an American politician who served as the 41st Mayor of Los Angeles from 2005 to 2013. A member of the Democratic Party, Villaraigosa was a national co-chairman of Hillary ...
(a graduate of
Peoples College of Law who never passed the bar exam after failing four times),
Stanford Law School
Stanford Law School (Stanford Law or SLS) is the law school of Stanford University, a private research university near Palo Alto, California. Established in 1893, it is regarded as one of the most prestigious law schools in the world. Stanford La ...
dean and
Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School (Harvard Law or HLS) is the law school of Harvard University, a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest continuously operating law school in the United States.
Each class ...
graduate
Kathleen Sullivan Kathleen Sullivan may refer to:
* Kathleen Sullivan (lawyer) (born 1955), American lawyer and former dean of Stanford Law School
* Kathleen Sullivan (journalist) (born 1953), American television journalist
* Kathleen Sullivan Alioto
Kathleen Sul ...
(who failed the bar in July 2005 but passed on her second attempt in February 2006), California Governor and former Attorney General
Jerry Brown
Edmund Gerald Brown Jr. (born April 7, 1938) is an American lawyer, author, and politician who served as the 34th and 39th governor of California from 1975 to 1983 and 2011 to 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, he was elected Secretary of S ...
, a graduate of
Yale Law School
Yale Law School (Yale Law or YLS) is the law school of Yale University, a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. It was established in 1824 and has been ranked as the best law school in the United States by ''U ...
(who failed his first attempt but passed on his second attempt), former California Governor
Pete Wilson
Peter Barton Wilson (born August 23, 1933) is an American attorney and politician who served as the 36th governor of California from 1991 to 1999. A member of the Republican Party, he also served as a United States senator from California bet ...
, a graduate of
UC Berkeley School of Law
The University of California, Berkeley, School of Law (commonly known as Berkeley Law or UC Berkeley School of Law) is the law school of the University of California, Berkeley, a public research university in Berkeley, California. It is one of 1 ...
(who passed on his fourth attempt), former San Francisco Board of Supervisors President
Angela Alioto
Angela Mia Alioto Veronese (born October 20, 1949) is an American attorney, politician, member of the Secular Franciscan Order, and founder of the Knights of Saint Francis at the Porziuncola Nuova. A member of the Democratic Party, she is the d ...
(who failed several times before passing) and former United States Secretary of the Interior
William P. Clark Jr.
William Patrick Clark Jr. (October 23, 1931August 10, 2013) was an American rancher, judge, and public servant who served under President Ronald Reagan as the Deputy Secretary of State from 1981 to 1982, United States National Security Advisor f ...
(who failed his first attempt).
[ Unsuccessful applicants have even sued the State Bar—unsuccessfully—on the grounds that the exam is unnecessarily difficult.
Before July 2017, the California Bar Examination consisted of 18 hours of examination time spread out over three days; the only U.S. state with a longer bar exam was Louisiana, at 21.5 hours of testing. (]Louisiana law
Law in the state of Louisiana is based on a more diverse set of sources than the laws of the other 49 states of the United States. Private law—that is, substantive law between private sector parties, principally contracts and torts—has a ...
, in contrast to the common law
In law, common law (also known as judicial precedent, judge-made law, or case law) is the body of law created by judges and similar quasi-judicial tribunals by virtue of being stated in written opinions."The common law is not a brooding omnipresen ...
system of the other 49 states, is based partially on civil law and is one of the few exams without a multiple choice component.) Beginning in July 2017, the California Bar Exam adopted a 2-day format.
The exam currently tests 13 different subject areas:
* Constitutional Law
Constitutional law is a body of law which defines the role, powers, and structure of different entities within a State (polity), state, namely, the executive (government), executive, the parliament or legislature, and the judiciary; as well as th ...
(Federal)
* Contract
A contract is a legally enforceable agreement between two or more parties that creates, defines, and governs mutual rights and obligations between them. A contract typically involves the transfer of goods, services, money, or a promise to tran ...
s (Common Law and Uniform Commercial Code
The Uniform Commercial Code (UCC), first published in 1952, is one of a number of Uniform Acts that have been established as law with the goal of harmonizing the laws of sales and other commercial transactions across the United States through UC ...
)
* Criminal Law
Criminal law is the body of law that relates to crime. It prescribes conduct perceived as threatening, harmful, or otherwise endangering to the property, health, safety, and moral welfare of people inclusive of one's self. Most criminal law i ...
and Procedure
* Evidence
Evidence for a proposition is what supports this proposition. It is usually understood as an indication that the supported proposition is true. What role evidence plays and how it is conceived varies from field to field.
In epistemology, evidenc ...
(Federal Rules of Evidence
First adopted in 1975, the Federal Rules of Evidence codify the evidence law that applies in United States federal courts. In addition, many states in the United States have either adopted the Federal Rules of Evidence, with or without local v ...
and the California Evidence Code
The California Evidence Code (abbreviated to Evid. Code in the California Style Manual) is a California code that was enacted by the California State Legislature on May 18, 1965 to codify the formerly mostly common-law law of evidence. Section 351 ...
)
* Real Property
In English common law, real property, real estate, immovable property or, solely in the US and Canada, realty, is land which is the property of some person and all structures (also called improvements or fixtures) integrated with or affixe ...
* Tort
A tort is a civil wrong that causes a claimant to suffer loss or harm, resulting in legal liability for the person who commits the tortious act. Tort law can be contrasted with criminal law, which deals with criminal wrongs that are punishable ...
s
* Wills Wills may refer to:
* Will (law)
A will or testament is a legal document that expresses a person's (testator) wishes as to how their property ( estate) is to be distributed after their death and as to which person (executor) is to manage the pr ...
(California law)
* Trusts
A trust is a legal relationship in which the holder of a right gives it to another person or entity who must keep and use it solely for another's benefit. In the Anglo-American common law, the party who entrusts the right is known as the "settl ...
* Civil Procedure
Civil procedure is the body of law that sets out the rules and standards that courts follow when adjudicating civil lawsuits (as opposed to procedures in criminal law matters). These rules govern how a lawsuit or case may be commenced; what ki ...
(Federal Rules of Civil Procedure
The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (officially abbreviated Fed. R. Civ. P.; colloquially FRCP) govern civil procedure in United States district courts. The FRCP are promulgated by the United States Supreme Court pursuant to the Rules Enabling ...
and the California Code of Civil Procedure
The California Code of Civil Procedure (abbreviated to Code Civ. Proc. in the California Style Manual or just CCP in treatises and other less formal contexts) is a California code enacted by the California State Legislature in March 1872 as the ...
)
* Community Property (California law)
* Professional Responsibility
Professional responsibility is a set of duties within the concept of professional ethics for those who exercise a unique set of knowledge and skill as professionals.
Professional responsibility applies to those professionals making judgments, a ...
(California law and the ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct)
* Business Associations (Corporations, Agency, all forms of Partnerships, and Limited Liability Entities)
* Remedies
The written section of the exam, which includes 5 essays and 1 90 minute performance test, accounts for 50% of the total score. Applicants sitting for the California Bar Examination do not know which of the 13 subjects listed above will in fact be tested on the essay portion of the examination. In recent years, it has been increasingly common for the exam to feature one or more "crossover" questions, which tests applicants in multiple subjects. Examples of past tested essays with sample answers are available on the California State Bar website.
California-specific legal knowledge is required only for Evidence, Civil Procedure, Wills, Community Property, and Professional Responsibility; for the other topics, either general common law
In law, common law (also known as judicial precedent, judge-made law, or case law) is the body of law created by judges and similar quasi-judicial tribunals by virtue of being stated in written opinions."The common law is not a brooding omnipresen ...
("bar exam law") or the federal laws apply. Beginning in July 2007, applicants may be tested on the California Evidence Code and the California Code of Civil Procedure in the essay portion of the exam in addition to the Federal Rules of Evidence
First adopted in 1975, the Federal Rules of Evidence codify the evidence law that applies in United States federal courts. In addition, many states in the United States have either adopted the Federal Rules of Evidence, with or without local v ...
and Federal Rules of Civil Procedure
The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (officially abbreviated Fed. R. Civ. P.; colloquially FRCP) govern civil procedure in United States district courts. The FRCP are promulgated by the United States Supreme Court pursuant to the Rules Enabling ...
.
The Multistate Bar Examination (MBE) portion of the exam accounts for 50% of the total score and is a nationally administered, 200-question multiple choice
Multiple choice (MC), objective response or MCQ (for multiple choice question) is a form of an objective assessment in which respondents are asked to select only correct answers from the choices offered as a list. The multiple choice format is m ...
exam.[National Conference of Bar Examiners, Preparing for the MBE, http://www.ncbex.org/exams/mbe/preparing/] Of the 200 questions, only 175 questions are scored, while the other 25 are unscored experimental questions used to gauge their appropriateness for future exams. The MBE covers only the topics of contracts (including sales of goods under Article 2 of the Uniform Commercial Code
The Uniform Commercial Code (UCC), first published in 1952, is one of a number of Uniform Acts that have been established as law with the goal of harmonizing the laws of sales and other commercial transactions across the United States through UC ...
), real property, torts, constitutional law, criminal law and procedure, the Federal Rules of Evidence, and the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. While the essay section of the exam may test one or more of these areas as well, the MBE section is dedicated to these subjects.
The exam sites are usually large convention center
A convention center (American English; or conference centre in British English) is a large building that is designed to hold a convention, where individuals and groups gather to promote and share common interests. Convention centers typica ...
s in Northern and Southern California
Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most po ...
. Exam security is tight. For example, proctors are assigned to stand in restrooms for the duration of the entire exam to prevent applicants from asking each other for assistance.[ Additionally, applicants are required to provide fingerprints, photo identification, and a handwriting sample at the testing site.
Overall bar exam pass rates tend to hover between 35% and 55%, and previously were often the lowest in the United States.][ In October 2017, the California Supreme Court reviewed the passing score of the California Bar Exam, after being urged by various law schools to lower the passing score. After review, the California Supreme Court initially declined to lower the passing score, leaving it intact. Finally in 2020 the California Supreme Court lowered the passing score, effective with the October 2020 bar exam onward.] This change was made not only in light of the state of the COVID-19 pandemic, but also with renewed consideration of the review conducted in 2017. The passing score dropped from its previous requirement of 1440 to 1390.
The lowest pass rate occurred in February 2020 when 26.8% of takers passed. When considering only graduates of ABA-approved schools, the average pass rate for first timers in 2021 was 79%; for repeaters 26%, mirroring the percentage passing rates for all jurisdictions combined. The overall pass rate for the July 2022 California Bar Examination was 52.4%.
2019 release of test subjects
In early July 2019, State Bar employees provided several high-ranking law school Deans with a list of the test subjects to be given on the bar exam in a few weeks' time. Some of these Deans shared this list with their students prematurely. Learning that some schools had this information and others didn't, the State Bar decided to release the shortened list to all exam takers. A report issued by the California Supreme Court concluded that the release was inadvertent "human error" but redacted the names of State Bar personnel responsible for the error.
Admission of undocumented immigrants
On February 1, 2014, Sergio C. Garcia, an undocumented immigrant, was sworn in as a member of the State Bar of California, making him the nation's first undocumented immigrant to become an attorney. The bar admission came almost one month after the state supreme court held that undocumented immigrants were not automatically disqualified from being licensed as attorneys in the state. Under that ruling, as well as a statute that Governor Brown signed into law taking effect on January 1, 2014 (in order to take advantage of a specific provision of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act
The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA) is a United States federal law passed by the 104th United States Congress and signed into law by President Bill Clinton. The bill implemented major changes to ...
discussed at oral argument before the state supreme court), Garcia was admitted to the state bar. Garcia was brought to the United States as a child and remained, according to court findings, undocumented through no fault of his own. He grew up in Northern California, graduated from college and law school. He passed the California Bar Exam on the first try, and satisfied the Committee of Bar Examiners of his good moral character.
Professional responsibility rules
Pre-2018 rules
Prior to November 1, 2018, California was the only state that did not use either set of professional responsibility
Professional responsibility is a set of duties within the concept of professional ethics for those who exercise a unique set of knowledge and skill as professionals.
Professional responsibility applies to those professionals making judgments, a ...
rules developed by the American Bar Association. From 2001 to 2014, the Commission for the Revision of the Rules of Professional Conduct of the State Bar of California worked on a comprehensive revision of the California rules that was intended to, among other things, convert them into a heavily modified, localized version of the Model Rules. That is, the result would look like the Model Rules, but with appropriate modifications to preserve the substance of existing California rules that better reflect local laws and customs.
However, the Commission's progress was very slow, simply because there are so many substantive and structural differences between the California rules and the Model Rules. The Commission finally finished nearly all the revisions in 2010 and the State Bar Board of Governors (later renamed the Board of Trustees) ratified them in July and September of that year. However, the proposed revisions could not go into effect unless and until they were also approved by the Supreme Court of California. As of 2014, 11 of 67 proposed rules had been finalized and submitted to the Court for its approval.
On September 19, 2014, for reasons that were not fully explained, the Supreme Court of California suddenly returned to the State Bar all proposed revised rules that had been submitted for its consideration. The Court's letter directed the State Bar to start the process all over again with a new Commission, and to submit a new set of revised rules by March 31, 2017.
2018 revisions
On November 1, 2018, California adopted a new model code largely based on the ABA model rules, with some exceptions. California professional responsibility law is still divided among California Business & Professions Code Section 6068 (the statutory duties of an attorney), the California Rules of Professional Conduct (CRPC), and a number of uncodified cases. A number of innovations in professional responsibility law first arose in California, such as Cumis counsel.
Of all American states, California imposes one of the strongest duties of confidentiality
Confidentiality involves a set of rules or a promise usually executed through confidentiality agreements that limits the access or places restrictions on certain types of information.
Legal confidentiality
By law, lawyers are often required ...
upon its attorneys. There were no exceptions to the duty until 2004, when Business & Professions Code Section 6068 was amended to add a single discretionary exception to prevent imminent death or great bodily harm. The amendment was borrowed from the ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct
The American Bar Association's Model Rules of Professional Conduct (MRPC) are a set of rules and commentaries on the ethical and professional responsibilities of members of the legal profession in the United States. Although the MRPC generally is ...
.
Lawyer discipline
As its primary post-split function, the Supreme Court of California operates its own State Bar Court, staffed by judges who specialize in handling only professional responsibility cases on a full-time basis (i.e., it is their primary job function). Most other jurisdictions either appoint special master
In the law of the United States, a special master is generally a subordinate official appointed by a judge to ensure judicial orders are followed, or in the alternative, to hear evidence on behalf of the judge and make recommendations to the jud ...
s on an ''ad hoc'' basis to adjudicate such cases, or have disciplinary commissions or boards that function on a part-time basis and hold relatively informal hearings.
Complaints against attorneys are investigated and prosecuted by the State Bar's Office of the Chief Trial Counsel. Under the State Bar Act, upon receiving a complaint, the Bar may choose whether to open an investigation. If the Bar does find sufficient evidence of misconduct, decides that it has standing, and decides to take action to impose discipline, it has the power to proceed against accused attorneys either in the Supreme Court of California or in the State Bar Court. The State Bar holds that it may decline to review complaints that are not made by a judge who heard a matter related to the complaint.
Complaints of professional misconduct are usually first prosecuted in the Hearing Department of the State Bar Court. If the lawyer disagrees with an adverse decision, he or she may appeal to the Review Department of the State Bar Court, and from there to the state supreme court. Although the State Bar Court's decisions are technically only recommendations, the distinction is largely academic. Failure to comply with conditions imposed as part of any form of lesser discipline short of disbarment can itself result in a recommendation of disbarment, which is virtually always ratified because the attorney's noncompliance with the State Bar Act will have been clearly established by that point.
In February 2012, Jon B. Streeter, President of the State Bar, said:
Licensee services
As a regulatory agency whose mission is now focused on public protection, the State Bar's services are focused on those necessary to meet its mission. The State Bar maintains licensee records and a searchable database of attorney profiles for the public on its website. To collect licensing fees that fund its operations, the State Bar sends out annual fee statements and collects fees.
Under the supervision of the Board of Legal Specialization, the State Bar officially certifies legal specialists in 11 different practice areas. It was first announced in February 1971 as the first such program anywhere in the United States. It began actual operations in 1973 with three practice areas initially available: workers' compensation, criminal law, and tax law.
The Minimum Continuing Legal Education Program, launched in 1990, certifies continuing legal education providers and enforces the MCLE requirement (currently 25 hours every three years) through random audits.
The Lawyer Assistance Program, created in 2002, assists lawyers with mental health and substance abuse problems.
The Mandatory Fee Arbitration Program, created in 1978, resolves attorney-client disputes over attorney fees. It is voluntary for clients but mandatory for attorneys if the client demands it.
With the split of professional association functions in 2018, member services were spun off. For example, an independent organization, CalBar Affinity, now maintains CalBar Connect, a website offering discounted products and services to California attorneys.
Other responsibilities
In addition to disciplinary functions, the State Bar still operates several other non-disciplinary functions:
*The Committee on Judicial Nominees Evaluation, which conducts confidential evaluations of persons identified by the Governor as candidates for judicial office and produces a rating of "exceptionally well qualified," "well qualified," "qualified," or "not qualified."
*The State Bar's Office of Access and Inclusion carries out strategic objectives around diversifying the profession and supports the work of the Legal Services Trust Fund Commission, which oversees distribution of legal aid funds. The revenue comes from the state Interest on Lawyer Trust Accounts program, the Equal Access Fund, which is appropriated by the State Legislature, and the Justice Gap Fund, funded by voluntary donations from attorneys. In 2022, the State Bar distributed nearly $150 million in legal aid funding. The State Bar distributes these funds to approximately 100 nonprofit organizations that provide legal services to low-income Californians. Other access to justice initiatives include certifying lawyer referral services and encouraging and coordinating pro bono representation.
*The State Bar Client Security Fund Commission operates the Client Security Fund, which provides compensation for clients whose attorneys committed certain types of crimes against them like theft or embezzlement.
Executive Director Joseph Dunn controversy
On November 13, 2014, the State Bar issued a statement saying that former State Senator Joseph Dunn's employment as Executive Director had been terminated by the Board of Trustees. The same day, Dunn filed a whistle-blower
A whistleblower (also written as whistle-blower or whistle blower) is a person, often an employee, who reveals information about activity within a private or public organization that is deemed illegal, immoral, illicit, unsafe or fraudulent. Whi ...
lawsuit against the State Bar challenging the termination because he had exposed malfeasance and "egregious improprieties." The State Bar denied Dunn's allegations, saying the "Board received a complaint from a high-level employee raising serious, wide-ranging allegations about ... Dunn and certain State Bar employees." The lawsuit was eventually diverted into arbitration, and in March 2017, the arbitrator rejected Dunn's claims and exonerated the State Bar for his firing. In July 2022, the State Bar issued a Notice of Disciplinary Charges against Joe Dunn; as of December 2022 the case is pending.
References
External links
Official government website
Official State Bar Court contact page
California Lawyers Association (CLA)
{{DEFAULTSORT:State Bar Of California
California
California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
California law
1927 establishments in California
Organizations established in 1927