STUDENTS > Registrar's Office > J.D. Requirements & Graduation >

Bar Information

California Bar

California Bar Exam Information - Audio Recording
Dean Barbieri, Director of Examinations for the California Bar, provides information on how to prepare for the exam, what graders look for when grading essays and performance tests, and answers student questions.

• LISTEN NOW (May require Quicktime Player)

California Bar Components Checklist
California Bar

• Register as a first-year law student
• Complete and pass the Application for Determination of Moral Character
• Complete the Bar Exam Application Form
• Take and pass the MPRE

Bar Prep Schedule

     Tuesday, 4/22/08, 12:45-1:45 pm, Room 100 (lunch provided)
          Demystifying the Bar I -- Prep for Success
          Rodney Fong, Golden Gate University Handout
          Handout
          Video


     Wednesday, 4/23/08, 12:45-1:45 pm, Room 140 (lunch provided)
          Demystifying the Bar II -- Nuts & Bolts
          Laurel Liefert, BarPassers
          Handout
          Video  Audio


     Friday, 4/25/08, 1:00-5:00 pm, Room 100 (refreshments)
          Workshop I -- Performance Tests
          Laurel Liefert, BarPassers
          Handout
          Video

     Saturday, 4/26/08, 9:00-12:30, Room 105 (refreshments)
          Performance Test (proctored and graded)


     Friday, 5/2/08, 1:00-5:00 pm, Room 100 (refreshments)
          Workshop II -- Essays: Laurel Liefert, BarPassers
          (including 1-hour proctored and graded test)
          Video

How do I register for the California Bar as a first-year student?
First-year students must register as a law student if you intend to take the California Bar Exam upon graduation. Students need to register as a first-year law student within 90 days of beginning law school to avoid an extra-fee penalty imposed by the bar. See the Bar website for information and application: http://www.calbar.ca.gov. You must use this number on all subsequent applications and correspondence with the bar. If you are a transfer or visiting student who had decided to take the California Bar, you must register as a first-year student before filing an application or completing the Application for Determination of Moral Character.

Helpful Hints Regarding the Application for Determination of Moral Character.

• Second-year and third-year students must file an Application for Determination of Moral Character.
• The Office of the Registrar recommends you complete the "Moral Character and Fitness" eight to 10 months prior to the date you would like to be admitted to practice law. Usually no later than the fall of your third year if you are planning to take the July bar exam.
• Don't procrastinate! These forms are available year round at the Bar website: http://www.calbar.ca.gov. You will not be sworn into practice law until after your application has been cleared.
• It's expensive!
• The application will only be valid for two years.

The Determination of Moral Character is the most extensive of the bar applications. It requests detailed information from as far back as high school. An applicant is generally cleared when the state bar receives a fingerprint clearance, a DMV clearance, positive references (confidential questionnaires) from friends and employers as well as certificates of good standing from the law school (Office of the Registrar).

An applicant not meeting these prerequisites may still be cleared although further investigation may be required. The types of applications requiring further investigation are referred to as Level IV cases.

Information about the Bar Exam Application Form
Third-year students must file a Bar Exam Application Form before taking the bar exam. These forms are sent to the Office of the Registrar at the School of Law by the California Bar in March for the July Exam and in October for the February exam. Deadlines for submitting this application are enclosed in the application packets.

After the California Bar determines your eligibility to sit for this exam, they will mail a Law School Certificate to the Office of the Registrar for verification.

Certification by the registrar involves confirming that you have been awarded the J.D. degree. Graduating students are certified after all grades are received for their final semester, i.e., in January for the February bar and in June for the July bar.

Information for Students With Disabilities
Students with physical learning and/or chronic medical disabilities may request to take the any state bar exam with accommodations. This request must be made well in advance of the exam. Contact the bar for deadlines and requirements. See Holly Parrish (280 Simon Hall, 643-2744) for assistance with completing the required documentation.

About the Actual California Bar Exam
The Bar Exam has three parts: six essay questions, the Multistate Bar Examination (MBE) and two performance tests. The California bar may involve issues from the subjects listed below:

The Multistate Bar Exam (MBE) tests the six subjects marked by an asterisk above. (The majority of states include the MBE as a component of their examination. It consists of a six-hour test comprised of 200 multiple-choice questions.)

Some of the above topics are required courses and some are elective:

• Civil Procedure (required, first year)
• California Marital Property (elective)
• Constitutional Law (required, first year; Con Law II is elective)
• Contracts (required, first year)
• Corporations (elective)
• Criminal Law (required, first year)
• Criminal Procedure (elective)
• Evidence (elective)
• Professional Responsibility (required, second year)
• Real Property (Property, required first year)
• Remedies (elective)
• Torts (required, first year)
• Wills and Trusts (we call it Estates and Trusts, elective)

Multistate Professional Responsibility Exam
California requires passage of the Multistate Professional Responsibility Exam (MPRE). The MPRE fulfills a portion of the requirements for application for admission to practice law in jurisdictions that require the MPRE. The MPRE is administered three times a year: in March, August and November. Students are eligible to take the exam during their second or third year.

BarBri publishes information regarding the MPRE on their web site. Click here for their web site and click on the Multistate Professional Responsibility Exam on the left hand side of the web page.

Out-of-State Bar Information
If you are taking the bar in a state other than California, please remember to complete your application early and to submit the Law School Declaration to the Office of the Registrar before you take the bar. Most states have a deadline in which the Office of the Registrar must submit this form. Therefore, please submit it to the Office of the Registrar as soon as possible so we have enough time to process the form. Also be sure to submit any other information your bar would need such as a handwriting sample (New York Bar).

The California Bar has a useful page which contains links to other bar associations. Click here to find the state bar of your choice. Be warned that most state bar Web pages do not contain useful admissions information regarding dates of exams or how to get an application.

The BarBri Web page contains information regarding dates of the bar and contact information. Please click here for their website, click on "About the Bar Exam," and then use the box on the left hand side to pull up information by state.

* Neither the Registrar's Office nor Boalt Hall has any preference or particular recommendation about the BarBri courses.

Fingerprinting:

The California Bar requires applicants in California to submit their fingerprints through Live Scan computer scanning process. The Bar's Moral Character Determination Application instructions include Live Scan information.