Will you send me a reminder before my deadline? Will there be a reminder in My State Bar Profile?
No. The State Bar will not send a reminder before your NAT completion deadline. You are personally responsible for tracking and meeting your deadline.
If you do not complete NAT by your deadline, the State Bar will send you a notice of noncompliance. The notice will explain that you must complete NAT and pay any assessed noncompliance penalty to avoid being enrolled as inactive and becoming ineligible to practice law.
Because NAT is a onetime requirement, it may not appear in the same area of My State Bar Profile as your annual MCLE compliance obligations. Remember to:
Keep your email address and mailing address current with the State Bar,
Review your notifications in My State Bar Profile regularly, and
Complete NAT well before your deadline.
If I miss the deadline, how do I pay the noncompliance penalty?
If you do not complete NAT by your deadline, you will be assessed a noncompliance penalty, which may take up to 90 days to appear in My State Bar Profile. To pay the noncompliance penalty:
Select “Compliance Dashboard” in the top navigation menu.
In the “Annual License Fee Status” section, select “Pay your annual fees.”
Select “Calculate and pay my fees.”
Follow the instructions to pay any outstanding balance.
Even after a noncompliance penalty has been assessed, you are still required to complete NAT. If you do not complete NAT and resolve any assessed fees by the applicable deadlines, you may be enrolled as involuntarily inactive and become ineligible to practice law.
What is the New Attorney Training Program?
The State Bar of California’s New Attorney Training (NAT) Program is a mandatory online training program for all newly admitted California attorneys. It consists of nine State Bar–produced courses covering professional responsibilities and practical skills for practicing law. The courses may be completed in any order and at your own pace.
Topic
MCLE Credit
Attorney as an Officer of the Court—Civility and Pro Bono Legal Services
1.0 hour of Civility
Attorney Communication Duties
1.25 hours of Legal Ethics
Attorney Well-Being: The Bedrock of Competence
1.0 hour of Competence: Prevention and Detection
Attorney-Client Relationships
1.25 hours of Legal Ethics
Conflict Resolution, Interpersonal and Communication Skills, and Technology
0.75 hours of General
Elimination of Bias
1.0 hour of Elimination of Bias
Introduction to Law Practice Management Skills
1.0 hour of General
The Attorney as a Fiduciary of Funds and Property of Clients and Others
1.5 hours of Legal Ethics
The Duty of Confidentiality and Conflicts of Interest
1.25 hours of Legal Ethics
Can I claim MCLE credit for NAT courses?
The State Bar’s New Attorney Training is a separate requirement and is not MCLE. However, you may apply NAT course hours toward your MCLE requirements if you complete the hours during your first MCLE compliance period. (Rule 2.142.) Review your MCLE requirements, including any proportional requirement, to determine whether and how the NAT hours apply to your situation.
When is my deadline to complete NAT?
You must complete NAT by the last day of the month of your one-year anniversary as a State Bar licensee. (Rule 2.141.)
For example, if you were admitted on October 15, your deadline is October 31 of the following year. If you have a question about your deadline, complete the Licensee Records and Compliance Inquiry form.
How do I access the New Attorney Training?
The New Attorney Training Program courses can be accessed through My State Bar Profile. The fee to access all nine courses is $55. Fee waivers are not available.
Locate the e-learning section toward the bottom of the home page, and select “E-Learning Portal.”
On the E-Learning Dashboard’s top navigation bar, select “View Catalog.”
In the search box, type “New Attorney Training.”
Select “Add to Cart” and complete the checkout process.
After you purchase the courses, when you return to the E-Learning Dashboard, select “Not Started” to locate the course you want to start. Then, select the red + button to the right of the course title, and select “Launch.”
Can I get a fee waiver for the course?
No. Fee waivers are not available. The fee to access all nine NAT courses is $55.
Can I request an exemption or time extension?
There are no exemptions from the NAT requirement. (Rule 2.143.)
Time extensions are granted only in rare cases involving documented personal hardship. (Rule 2.144.) If you believe you have a qualifying hardship, submit the applicable State Bar request as soon as possible and ideally before your NAT deadline, if feasible.
Submitting a request does not excuse compliance unless the State Bar grants it. Do not delay beginning or completing NAT while awaiting a decision.
I’m a former Provisional Licensure Program (PLP) participant and was recently admitted. Do I need to take NAT again?
If you completed any portion of NAT while enrolled in the State Bar’s PLP, you are considered to have satisfied that portion of the NAT requirement and do not need to retake it. Make sure you complete all nine NAT courses by the deadline.
Check your E-Learning Portal to confirm that your completed courses are reflected. If a completed course does not appear in your record, contact elearning@calbar.ca.gov for assistance.
As a federal or state employee, am I exempt from completing NAT?
No. Although certain federal or state employees may be exempt from the general MCLE requirement, there are no exemptions from the NAT requirement for new licensees. (Rule 2.143.) You must complete NAT by your one-year admission anniversary deadline.
How do I file a complaint against my lawyer or a lawyer referral service?
If you believe your lawyer has done something wrong, you can file a complaint with the State Bar. Complaints may be submitted online or by mail. If you have questions or need assistance in completing the form, call the State Bar’s Attorney Complaint Hotline at 800-843-9053. For more information on reporting a lawyer to the State Bar and handling other problems, read the legal guide If You Have a Problem with an Attorney.
If you have a complaint about a certified or uncertified LRS, you can file a complaint against the service with the State Bar. In order to promote public protection, the State Bar will review your complaint to determine if the LRS has violated Business and Professions Code Section 6155 and State Bar Rules.
For more information on certified lawyer referral services, contact LRS@calbar.ca.gov.
When are the annual fees due?
The due date is by March 30, or the next business day if that date falls on a weekend or holiday, each year during the annual license renewal process. The 2025 annual deadline is April 1, 2025. If you miss the deadline, you will be charged a penalty ($103 for active attorneys, $31 for inactive attorneys).
What activities qualify for general MCLE credit?
Activities that qualify for general MCLE credit must: (1) relate to legal subjects that are directly relevant to California attorneys, and (2) offer current, significant educational, professional, or practical content with the specific objective of increasing each participant’s professional competency as an attorney. Programs created primarily for nonattorney audiences (for example, general public, clients, or business staff) do not qualify and will not be approved for general MCLE credit. More on Standards for MCLE activity Approval.
What is IOLTA?
IOLTA stands for Interest on Lawyers’ Trust Accounts. Attorneys deposit client funds that they plan to hold briefly, or that are too small to earn interest for the client, into larger shared accounts. Over 73,000 attorneys make deposits in approximately 49,000 IOLTA accounts in California. As of September 2019, IOLTA accounts hold nearly $5 billion. Any interest earned on these accounts is paid by financial institutions to the State Bar, which in turn distributes those funds as grants to qualified nonprofit civil legal organizations throughout the state.
Refer to the State Bar’s IOLTA FAQ page for more information.
Who do I list as my supervisor in the employment section of the moral character application?
Provide the name of your direct supervisor. If you had more than one supervisor, provide the name of the individual most familiar with your conduct. If your supervisor is no longer at the company and you do not have their contact information, please list “Human Resources.”
If your supervisor is related to you by blood; is your spouse, partner, or significant other; or related to you through your spouse, partner, or significant other, please list a non-related colleague who is familiar with your work. If no such person is available, you may list your relative as your supervisor. Please note how the supervisor is related to you on your application.
I travel a lot, including overseas, and I cannot recall every address where I lived. How do I appropriately respond to the “Residence” section of the moral character application?
Some applicants have traveled extensively in the past three years and have numerous addresses to report on the moral character application. You are encouraged to provide as much information pertaining to each residence as can be reasonably recalled. You are responsible for the complete and accurate reporting of information on the application to the best of your ability, and the failure to provide complete responses could result in a delay in the processing of the application.
Will I receive immediate confirmation that the document or comment I posted to my moral character application was received?
No. However, you can view the documents you have successfully uploaded to your case in the Applicant Portal. You will receive confirmation once staff reviews the information.
1.5 What measures are the State Bar taking to ensure the information reported for CTAPP is secure?
The State Bar takes reasonable precautions and has security measures in place to protect the personal information we collect and maintain against loss, unauthorized access, use, modification, or disclosure. We take the following measures to secure the information that is stored within our applications:
Protecting the security of individuals’ personal information during transmission by using encryption protocols and software.
Storing personal information in secure locations in an encrypted format.
Ensuring staff is trained on procedures for the management and release of personal information. This information can only be accessed by staff whose work requires it.
Conducting periodic audits to ensure that proper information management policies and procedures are being followed.
2.8 I don’t handle entrusted funds. Do I have to report?
If you do not maintain a trust account, a trust account is not maintained on your behalf, and you do not need a trust account because you are not responsible for complying with any of the requirements or prohibitions in rule 1.15—other than the disclosure and agreement requirements in rule 1.15(b) pertaining to depositing a flat fee paid in advance into a lawyer’s or law firm’s operating account—you can answer “no” to the Screening Question: “At any point during the reporting period of January 1, 2025–December 31, 2025, or, if you are a new licensee who must pay your initial license fees pursuant to rule 2.12 of the Rules of the State Bar, from your date of admission through the following December 31, 2025, or the due date for payment of fees, whichever is earlier, were you responsible for complying with any of the requirements or prohibitions governing the safekeeping of funds of clients and other persons under rule 1.15 of the California Rules of Professional Conduct?” After submitting that response and declaring the information is true, your compliance with CTAPP will be deemed complete.
If your practice does not require a client trust account, you do not need to open one to report it to the State Bar as part of the CTAPP requirements. If you have questions about using trust accounts, including whether you are responsible for complying with any of the requirements or prohibitions in rule 1.15 or whether you need a trust account, please contact the State Bar’s Ethics Hotline research service at 800-238-4427 (toll-free in California). The Ethics Hotline might be able to provide helpful citations and resource references. The Ethics Hotline cannot provide legal advice, nor tell you how to comply with any of the CTAPP requirements, including the self-assessment.
3.1.2 Am I responsible for complying with any of the requirements or prohibitions governing the safekeeping of funds of clients and other persons under rule 1.15 of the California Rules of Professional Conduct?
A lawyer who has no responsibility to comply with any of the requirements or prohibitions in rule 1.15 and a lawyer who is responsible for complying only with the disclosure and agreement requirements in rule 1.15(b) pertaining to depositing a flat fee paid in advance into a lawyer’s or law firm’s operating account, can comply with their reporting requirements by answering “no” to the screening question as to whether they were responsible for complying with any of the requirements or prohibitions governing the safekeeping of funds of clients and other persons under rule 1.15 of the California Rules of Professional Conduct and thereafter submitting their declaration. Lawyers who have no such responsibilities include:
A government lawyer-employee who is not responsible for the safe keeping of entrusted funds;
An in-house counsel who is employed by their client and does not receive or hold client funds or funds entrusted by others;
Law professors who do not represent clients that involve any entrusted funds and do not otherwise receive or hold entrusted funds;
A lawyer in a large firm who only performs document review, has no interaction with any clients, and has no responsibilities to carry out any of the duties under rule 1.15;
A lawyer who bills for fees and costs after completion of the work and therefore does not take advance fees and their practice does not involve the receipt of any other funds in which a client or third party has an interest (e.g., client settlement funds, etc.); and
A lawyer who does not receive or hold any entrusted funds except for flat fees paid in advance and properly deposited into a lawyer’s or law firm’s operating account in accordance with the disclosure and agreement requirements in rule 1.15(b) of the Rules of Professional Conduct.
3.3.5 How do I edit an existing account?
Please check column 2 (Application Type) of the Step 2 account grid. If the account was registered through Agency Billing you can only update the Account Connection to “Disassociated/Added in Error.” To do so, please see FAQ 3.3.4. For all other changes, including adding a balance, firm name changes, etc., please contact your firm administrator.
If your account was previously registered as a “Ind. CTA or Non-CA IOLTA” account type, you will be required to update your account type to “IOLTA,” “non-CA IOLTA,” or “non-IOLTA.”
If you were not previously required to provide an open date, you will be required to provide the open date for each of your registered accounts.
If the account was registered through My State Bar Profile, you can edit some details of an existing account. To do so, you should:
Locate the account you wish to disassociate in your list of accounts.
Click on the plus sign (+) on the right-hand side of the screen to expand options.
Select the “Edit Balance,” “Update Connection,” “Update Account Type,” “Edit Close Date,” “Edit Open Date,” or “Edit Firm Name” tab depending on what information you want to update.
Update the information.
Click the “Save” button.
4.4 I have an IOLTA account outside California. In question 2 of the Step 3 (Self-Assessment), how can I affirm that any funds held in a California IOLTA account are maintained in an IOLTA-eligible institution identified on the State Bar of California’s website if the account is held outside California by an institution that is not on the approved list?
Under Business and Professions Code section 6212, attorneys that established an IOLTA account pursuant to subdivision (a) of Business and Professions Code section 6211, may hold IOLTA accounts only at eligible financial institutions. Rule 1.15(a) of the California Rules of Professional Conduct generally requires that trust accounts for California clients be maintained in California. You are permitted to hold client funds in an IOLTA account outside California if your client is from somewhere other than California or if your California client has a substantial relationship with the other jurisdiction and has provided written consent. If your practice meets those criteria and you do not have a California IOLTA, you may select “I do not have a California IOLTA” as your response.
Does serving on the board of a legal aid organization count as pro bono legal services?
For purposes of this reporting requirement, board service for a legal aid nonprofit would qualify because all board work with such an organization is enabling the delivery of legal services to the indigent (since these organizations primarily serve indigent California residents). Please note that some legal aid providers and other nonprofits for which attorneys provide pro bono legal services may also ask attorneys to report pro bono hours, but the definition for pro bono legal services may vary for their purposes. Attorneys should confirm definitions with the entity before reporting pro bono hours to the entity.
I work in a law office or judge’s chamber. Does my work qualify as legal study under the LOS Program?
No. Working in a law office or judge’s chambers is insufficient to get credit for legal study under the LOS Program.
How do I know when I am eligible to take the FYLSX?
An applicant becomes eligible to take the FYLSX after completion of their first year of law study. If your second session, which completes the first year, ends prior to the final eligibility deadline for the current FYLSX, you are strongly encouraged to apply for the FYLSX, as it will be considered your first eligible administration in the calculation of your legal study credit.
Can I take 10 hours of continuing legal education on similar topics provided by another source to satisfy the 10 hours of MCLE required by the New Attorney Training Program?
No. All persons newly admitted to the State Bar of California must take the New Attorney Training Program courses produced by the State Bar and offered through this e-learning portal.
No other courses will satisfy completion of the New Attorney Training requirement for new admittees.
Where will I make my payments?
Payments will be made through a third-party vendor, Wells Fargo, using their E-Bill Express platform.
Does the State Bar of California accept PHV applications for cases in federal courts?
No. You must contact the federal court clerk to ascertain if the filing must be served on a specific custodial record keeper.
How do I gain approval to appear as PHV?
You must file an application with the court to appear on behalf of the client in the related case. Please refer to rule 9.40(c) of the California Rules of Court. The filing submitted to the court must include a copy of a proof of service showing that all parties and the State Bar of California have been served. You must also remit the fee to the State Bar of California with a copy of the application.
The application must state:
The applicant's residence and office address;
The courts to which the applicant has been admitted to practice and the dates of admission;
That the applicant is a licensee in good standing in those courts;
That the applicant is not currently suspended or disbarred in any court;
The title of each court and cause in which the applicant has filed an application to appear as counsel pro hac vice in California in the preceding two years, the date of each application, and whether or not it was granted; and
The name, address, and telephone number of the active licensee of the State Bar of California who is the attorney of record.
What are some of the other requirements imposed by the rules?
A PLL must:
Expressly refer to themselves orally and in writing as a Provisionally Licensed Lawyer and/or participant in the State Bar’s Provisional Licensure Program and not describe themselves as a fully licensed lawyer or imply in any way orally or in writing that they are a fully licensed lawyer.
Follow the same professional conduct rules as all fully licensed lawyers.
Agree to be subject to the disciplinary authority of the Supreme Court of California and the State Bar with respect to the laws and rules governing the conduct of lawyers.
Attest that they will not practice California law other than under the supervision of an approved Supervising Lawyer during the time they are provisionally licensed.
Be employed by or volunteering at the firm (as defined in rule 9.49) where the Supervising Lawyer works, which must have an office located in California.
Immediately report the termination of supervision by their Supervising Lawyer to the State Bar.
How do I know if I will be working for an IOLTA-funded organization?
“IOLTA” stands for Interest on Lawyers’ Trust Accounts. IOLTA is a method of raising money, primarily for providing legal services to those unable to afford them.
The State Bar’s Legal Services Trust Fund Program collects the interest generated by IOLTA accounts and distributes the funds to more than 100 nonprofit legal aid organizations that provide civil legal aid to indigent Californians.
Effective August 1, 2023, lawyers must comply with Rule of Professional Conduct 8.3, which requires a lawyer to report certain misconduct by another lawyer. The Rule 8.3 Reporting Requirements page provides more information about this reporting obligation.
California criminal prosecutors are required to notify the State Bar when they file criminal charges (felony or misdemeanor) against an attorney.[7]
California courts are required to notify the State Bar when an attorney is convicted of any crime;[8] when an attorney has been found in contempt;[9] when an attorney has been sanctioned $1,000 or more (except for discovery sanctions);[10] when an attorney has been found in violation of certain statutes;[11] or when a civil judgment has been entered against an attorney for fraud, misrepresentation, breach of fiduciary duty, or gross negligence committed in a professional capacity.[12]
Insurance companies are required to notify the State Bar upon receipt of a claim or action against an attorney for fraud, misrepresentation, breach of fiduciary duty, or gross negligence committed in a professional capacity.[13]
The insurance commissioner reports workers’ compensation fraud to the State Bar.[14]
Banks submit reports to the State Bar when an attorney trust account is overdrawn.[15]
The State Bar is statutorily authorized to receive Criminal Offender Record Information (CORI)[16] from the California Department of Justice for purposes of admission, discipline, and regulation of attorneys.[17]
The State Bar is statutorily authorized to receive subsequent arrest notification services[18] for attorneys.[19]
What types of courses do you offer?
We offer a variety of online courses, the majority of which qualify for Minimum Continuing Legal Education (MCLE) credit, with a focus on required credits such as legal ethics and attorney competency. All courses are self-paced, allowing you to start, pause, and continue learning whenever it works best for you.
Is my payment information secure?
Yes, payments are processed through a secure gateway, and we do not store your card details.
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