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.
I had a bad experience with a Live Scan vendor. Can I report them to the State Bar?
Live Scan vendors are contracted through the DOJ and are not under the authority of the State Bar. Live Scan vendor complaints may be submitted to the State Bar, which will be sent to the DOJ. If you recently submitted your fingerprints through a DOJ-contracted Live Scan vendor and have had a negative experience, we encourage you to complete the Live Scan Vendor Complaint Form and email the completed form to the State Bar.
Will I be assessed fees from the State Bar?
Yes. The 2025 annual fees will be available to calculate and pay online through My State Bar Profile effective February 1, 2025.
What if I didn’t take enough courses during the compliance period?
Failure to complete the requirements during the compliance period will result in your having to make up the deficiency. You will have to submit all required hours to the online log and then submit the proof of compliance. You will also need to provide the audit submission cover sheet, a brief cover letter explaining why you were unable to complete the requirements during the compliance period along with the $205 deficiency fee for non-compliance by the deadline.
Do I send in the original certificates or the copies?
Photocopies are sufficient for the purposes of the audit. Hold on to your originals through the end of the year you report MCLE compliance.
2.13 How do I report changes to my trust accounts outside of the annual CTAPP reporting period (rule 2.2(C) of the Rules of the State Bar)?
A lawyer must report any changes to their client trust account to the State Bar within 30 days. A lawyer may add or close an account using the 30-day reporting window in My State Bar Profile, and a firm administrator may add or close an account or add or remove an attorney from an account through the 30-day reporting window in the Agency Billing platform. When a firm administrator adds a new attorney or removes an attorney from a trust account, they provide the effective date and reason for the disassociation as part of the reporting.
3.3.3 The bank holding my trust account was acquired by or merged with another bank. The new bank changed my routing number and/or account number, but I cannot update those fields during my CTAPP reporting. How do I report this change to my account?
The trust account reporting system does not allow changes to routing numbers or account numbers of previously registered trust accounts. To report this change, please close the registration of the existing account by clicking the “Update Account Information” link and then entering, in the “Edit Close Date” tab, the date the account was changed to the new routing and account number. You will also need to enter the balance on that date.
You can then register the account with the new routing number and account number. In the open date field, please enter the date the account was changed to the new routing and account number. Please be sure to enter the bank balance of the new account as of December 31.
4.2 I am licensed in multiple jurisdictions, and I maintain an active California license. I have clients in California and clients in another jurisdiction, and I maintain client trust accounts in California and another jurisdiction. Do I need to report my client trust accounts located in another jurisdiction?
Unless exempt (see FAQ 2.3, above), California licensees, regardless of where they practice, must still comply with the CTAPP reporting requirements. A licensee who was responsible for client funds and funds entrusted by others under the provisions of rule 1.15 of the California Rules of Professional Conduct must, annually, register each and every trust account in which the licensee held such funds at any time during the reportable time period by identifying account numbers and financial institutions in a manner prescribed by the State Bar for such reporting. There is no exception for out-of-state accounts.
What are pro bono legal services?
Under Business and Professions Code section 6073.1(c), pro bono legal services means “providing or enabling the direct delivery of legal services without expectation of compensation from the client other than reimbursement of expenses to any of the following:
An indigent person, as defined in subdivision (d) of section 6213.
A charitable, religious, civil, community, governmental, or educational organization in matters that are designed primarily to address the needs of persons of limited means.
A charitable, religious, civil, community, governmental, or educational organization in matters in furtherance of its organizational purposes.”
Generally, pro bono work performed through any State Bar legal aid grantee organization or through “a nonprofit organization that provides civil legal services for the poor without charge” qualifies as pro bono legal services and should be reported. See Business and Professions Code section 6159.51.
Attorneys are asked to use their best good-faith judgment when determining what qualifies.
How do I log out of the e-learning portal?
Click the ← MY STATE BAR PROFILE button at the top right of the e-learning portal to log out and return to the My State Bar Profile page.
What is the Installment Payment Plan?
The recently signed licensing fee bill requires the State Bar to offer an installment payment plan to active licensees eligible for fee scaling. This plan allows attorneys to divide their total annual fees into six equal payments instead of paying in full by the original deadline of April 1, 2025.
Can I opt out of the program after opting in?
No, once you opt in for the installment payment plan, you cannot opt out unless you are ineligible for fee scaling.
Who approves my application for PHV?
The court must approve your application in order for you to appear as PHV in a case. While the State Bar's Applicant Portal may show that your PHV case is "approved," this refers to the internal processing of your application and should not be taken as the court's approval of your appearance as PHV.
Do I have to pass an exam?
Yes. The course includes a Final Assessment. You must receive a passing score of 80 percent to complete the course.
