Yes. Applicants who are eligible for the PLP as first-time takers, similar to the PLLs who qualified to participate as 2020 graduates, must pass the bar exam and meet all other requirements for admission to practice law. Participation in the PLP for these cohorts is not a pathway to licensure; however, it does provide valuable real-world experience practicing law under the supervision of an experienced California attorney. In response to a prior survey, the vast majority (89%) of the PLLs agreed or strongly agreed that the program was valuable in preparing them for the practice of law.   

In preparation for the PLP application opening on September 1, 2025, you are encouraged to: 

• Submit an Application for Determination of Moral Character as soon as possible in the Applicant Portal if you do not have a valid positive moral character determination or a pending moral character application.  
• Sign up for the MPRE or ensure you have a passing score on file with the State Bar Office of Admissions. Verify your MPRE status via the status screen in the Applicant Portal.   
• Secure a California attorney who is willing to be your Supervising Lawyer and meets the requirements of rule 9.49. 

By December 31, 2025, you must have a passing MPRE score on file and either a valid positive moral character determination, or an adverse moral character determination that is pending on administrative review by the Committee of Bar Examiners or on appeal in the State Bar Court. We recommend that you fulfill these requirements as soon as possible.  

Yes. If you are named either individually or jointly with a client or other party, you must report the sanctions.

Yes, most courses include either an MCLE certificate or a certificate of completion. You can download and print your certificate once you complete all course requirements. Certificates are only available for 30 days after you complete the course. 

After purchase, your courses will be available under the "Learning Page" in your account. 

Yes. The State Bar New Attorney Training is not MCLE, however, new licensees can apply State Bar New Attorney Training hours to their MCLE requirement, provided that the hours are completed within the licensee’s MCLE compliance period. (Rule 2.142 of Title 2, Division 6, Chapter 1 of the Rules of the State Bar.)

By completing the entire New Attorney Training Program, you will complete 10 hours of MCLE credit, including 5.25 hours of legal ethics, 1.75 hours of general, 1 hours on competency, 1 hour on civility, and 1 hours on recognition and elimination of bias.

The title and the amount of credit offered by each course will depend on when the course was complete. See the table below.

Image

The Client Security Fund represents reimburses clients who have lost money or property due to theft or other dishonest act by a California lawyer acting in a professional capacity. Supported entirely by lawyers' annual fees, the fund reimburses eligible applicants up to $100,000. See the State Bar pamphlet "The Client Security Fund Can Help You."

Any active licensee who does not meet one of the exemptions in Business and Professions Code section 6073.2(d) is required to report the amount of pro bono service hours provided in the past year, including pro bono professionals, law school professors, and attorneys employed at law schools. Attorneys are asked to provide their best, good faith effort at reporting the amount of pro bono and/or reduced fee legal services hours provided to low-income individuals, nonprofit organizations, or public law libraries during the past year to meet the requirement of Business and Professions Code section 6073.2. Even licensees who are exempt from reporting their pro bono hours must declare their exemption status in My State Bar Profile. 

Yes, to the extent consistent with the information needed to research the issue.

All information about program participation is reported in aggregate. To view data about the LAP, please see the annual Lawyer Assistance Program Fact Sheet.

• 2023 Fact Sheet
• 2024 Fact Sheet
• 2025 Fact Sheet
   

The Working Group webpage provides membership details, guiding principles, and past agendas and materials. Interested parties can subscribe to email updates from the webpage and can watch past meeting recordings on the State Bar’s YouTube channel.

You may change or add an employer/agency by submitting an original Certified Law Student Program Application, a Supervising Attorney Declaration form from each new supervising attorney at the new employer, and the fee set forth in the Schedule of Charges and Deadlines through the Applicant Portal, prior to the commencement of the supervision period.

No. You must take your first eligible California Bar Examination as determined by the State Bar; otherwise, you are not eligible to apply to participate in the program.

You will not receive credit for hours of study devoted to repetition of studies previously completed and you will lose credit for the entire six-month study session.

You may contact the assigned State Bar accountant or CPA firm’s accountant directly via the contact information they provide when the review begins. You may also reach out to the State Bar’s CTAPP team for questions. The contact information for the State Bar team was included in the initial notice of selection for audit.

After you select a CPA firm and the State Bar has assigned the compliance review engagement to the CPA firm, you will be contacted directly by the CPA firm, who may request additional records, ask clarifying questions, and coordinate with you for the remainder of the compliance review process. The State Bar will remain available to assist if needed.

Possibly. Uncompensated work with an LRS oversight panel may count toward the pro bono hours requirement if it enables the delivery of legal services at a charitable, religious, civic, community, governmental, or education organization in matters in furtherance of its organizational purposes as defined under Business and Professions Code section 6073.1(c)(1)(C). Licensees should use their best judgment when determining whether the work performed, particularly non-legal tasks, enables the direct provision of legal work to the indigent or other nonprofit organizations.

You can email the State Bar and request a copy of your DOJ/FBI rejection notice. These notices include information on the reason why the DOJ and/or FBI rejected your fingerprints. The State Bar reviews each response and provides attorneys with a rejection email that summarizes the reason for the rejection and details the necessary steps to successfully resubmit fingerprints.

The IOLTA Program is a department within the State Bar of California that administers IOLTA accounts, as well as two other sources of funding for free civil legal aid to low-income and indigent people: the California Equal Access Fund and the Greg E. Knoll Justice Gap Fund.

The State Bar initiated the IOLTA Program due to the lack of resources available for indigent clients who are in need of civil legal services. The substantial amount of money the program generates makes it possible for hundreds of thousands of these people to get the legal help that they need every year.

A 21-member Legal Services Trust Fund Commission appointed by the State Bar's Board of Trustees and the Chief Justice (on behalf of the Judicial Council of California) oversees the Trust Fund Program. Two-thirds of the commission members are attorneys and one-third are public members.

At least two of the 21 members must be "indigent persons" as defined by law. Three judges serve as non-voting advisors to the commission.

The Commission determines the eligibility of programs applying for funding, reviews recipients' budgets for compliance with the law, and monitors and evaluates the activities of programs receiving Trust Fund Program grants.

Yes. You must enter each course included in the package into the online summary log and provide a copy of any proof of completion it may have included (for example, a log and witness statement, if the MCLE bundle include them.)