News Releases

At its meeting on January 18–19, the State Bar of California’s Board of Trustees discussed the State Bar’s significant budget challenges and provided direction on plans to request of the Legislature a licensing fee increase for 2025. When the Legislature authorized flat licensing fees for 2024 amid an ongoing structural deficit in the State Bar’s General Fund, it directed submission of reports by April 1 that will outline the State Bar’s future funding needs.

In a first-of-its kind move, the State Bar of California Committee of Bar Examiners (CBE) voted today to withdraw the registration and terminate the degree-granting authority of Los Angeles-based Peoples College of Law (PCL), effective May 31, 2024.

In a ruling issued on December 6, 2023, the Ninth Circuit’s en banc panel affirms the State Bar’s sovereign immunity as an arm of the state under the Eleventh Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.   

The State Bar of California’s first-ever comprehensive Law School Profile highlights the attrition, number of JD degrees awarded, and bar exam pass rates of California’s American Bar Association (ABA), California accredited (CALS), and unaccredited law schools by race/ethnicity and gender of the student body, exploring differences in outcomes for students. 

At its November meeting, the State Bar Board of Trustees approved forwarding to the California Supreme Court a plan to pilot a Portfolio Bar Examination (PBE) as a method for assessing a candidate’s minimum competence to practice law.

The State Bar of California announced today that it sold its San Francisco headquarters at 180 Howard Street in the Financial District to Ridge Capital Investors for $54 million.

The State Bar of California reported today that 51.5 percent of applicants passed the July 2023 General Bar Examination (GBX). As a result, the 3,888 people who passed the July exam will be eligible for admission to the State Bar as soon as all admissions requirements are satisfied.

The State Bar of California’s Annual Discipline Report for fiscal year (FY) 2023 (ADR) published today, includes for the first time a snapshot of the race/ethnicity and gender of disciplined attorneys.

The State Bar of California Board of Trustees marked a leadership transition at its September 21–22 meeting, as Board Chair Brandon Stallings, Vice Chair José Cisneros, and new Trustee Mary Huser were sworn into office.

The State Bar of California seized the Gardena practice of George Y. Takahashi, doing business as American Legal Counseling, Advanced Legal Services, and American Horitsusodan, announced George Cardona, the State Bar Chief Trial Counsel today. The Office of Chief Trial Counsel (OCTC) received an interim ruling from a Los Angeles Superior Court after Takahashi engaged in the unauthorized practice of law (UPL) by providing legal services and holding himself out as an attorney.