As part of its commitment to finding appropriate and fair solutions for test takers during the February 2025 Bar Exam, the Committee of Bar Examiners (CBE) met on April 18 to make its recommendations for scoring adjustments and set a
The State Bar Board of Trustees has approved exam software and testing locations for the in-person July 2025 California Bar Exam as it continues efforts to improve the test-taking experience and find appropriate remedies for those impacted by issues experienced during the February exam.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta today released information for the public and attorneys, about California attorneys’ ethical obligations after a natural disaster, like the Los Angeles fires this year. Attorneys with questions or concerns about these obligations should review California’s Rules of Professional Conduct (7.1-7.3) on communications concerning a lawyer’s services, advertising, and solicitation.
After hearing approximately two hours of public comment at its March 5 meeting, primarily from test takers reporting serious problems they encountered during the February 2025 California Bar Exam, the State Bar Board of Trustees directed the general counsel to retain an independent investigator to conduct a privileged investigation into the issues relating to the exam.
IOLTA stands for "Interest on Lawyers' Trust Accounts." Rule 1.15 of the Rules of Professional Conduct requires attorneys who handle client funds or funds entrusted by others, including settlement checks, fees advanced for services not yet performed, or money to pay court fees, to hold those funds in one or more interest-bearing bank accounts labeled as a “Trust Account,” or words of similar import.
If the amount is large or the funds are to be held for a long period of time, the attorney must place the money in an individual interest-bearing account for the benefit of the client.
However, if the amount of client funds is small or the funds will be held for such a short period of time that they are not capable of earning interest for the client in excess of the cost of maintaining a separate bank account, then they are pooled in a single account with similar funds of other clients.
The interest on these pooled-fund, IOLTA accounts is forwarded to the State Bar of California and used to support approximately 100 nonprofit legal aid organizations that provide civil legal aid to indigent and low-income people, seniors, and persons with disabilities.
At its February 20-21 meeting, the Board of Trustees heard a presentation on a new State Bar study showing that racial disparities in attorney discipline outcomes are narrowing, particularly for Black attorneys, following reforms implemented by the State Bar in response to the groundbreaking 2019 Farkas study.
How are the funds used?
IOLTA is a primary source of funding for civil legal aid in California. Civil legal aid provides free legal services to those who would not otherwise be able to afford them. On average low-income Californians report experiencing twice as many civil legal problems in a year as nonindigent Californians. Approximately 20 percent of Californians live in poverty and rely on these services for their civil legal needs.
Currently, almost 100 organizations receive IOLTA grants from the State Bar. In 2018 the State Bar distributed over $51 million to support civil legal aid. (This includes other funds besides IOLTA, such as the Equal Access Fund and the Greg E. Knoll Justice Gap Fund.) Top areas where these organizations provided legal assistance included housing, immigration, and family law/domestic violence cases. In 2017, almost 5,000 families were able to stay in their homes, over $16 million in unpaid wages were recovered, and over 2,000 individuals were able to obtain or maintain their health insurance as a result of civil legal aid.
