The State Bar seeks public comment on proposed changes to the rules for the Law Office Study Program to streamline, modernize, and improve the program, and eliminate unnecessary barriers to participation.
Deadline: January 31, 2023
Comments should be submitted using the online Public Comment Form. The online form allows you to input your comments directly and can also be used to upload your comment letter and/or other attachments.
The Law Office Study (LOS) program allows individuals to qualify to take the California Bar Exam without attending law school, by studying law for four years in a law office or judge’s chambers. The program provides an alternative pathway to licensure for those for whom traditional law school is not a good fit.
The existing rules governing this program reflect an outdated model of the practice of law, requiring that the student’s studies be completed “in a law office or judge’s chambers during regular business hours[.]” The proposed changes are intended to update the rules and eliminate unnecessary barriers to successful completion of the program.
As part of its comprehensive review and evaluation of Admissions rules, practices, procedures, and applicant-facing materials, the Committee of Bar Examiners considered the requirements and application materials for the Law Office Study (LOS) program. The LOS program provides an alternative to law school for those who may not be able to attend a traditional law school because their other responsibilities make attendance difficult, because they do not do well in traditional academic settings, or for financial reasons. The committee looked for changes to the rules that could help participants successfully complete the program by eliminating unnecessary barriers and by giving participants clear guidance as to the requirements they must meet.
The committee found that the existing rules for the LOS program reflect an outdated model of the practice of law. The way attorneys do their work has changed significantly since rule 4.29 was adopted in 2008, and what once were reasonable requirements now stand as outdated and unnecessary barriers to successful completion of study in the LOS program.
To bring the rules for the LOS program into alignment with the modern practice of law, the proposed rule changes would eliminate the requirement that study be completed “during regular business hours” and would expressly allow study to be completed in a physical location other than the law office or judge’s chambers. However, to ensure that adequate supervision is provided when a student is studying remotely, the proposed rules would require a supervisor to submit a plan for remote supervision, and, in recognition of the benefits of some in-person contact, require that at least 5 hours of “direct supervision” be provided in person for each 12 weeks of study.
The proposed rules also make a number of changes to clarify the procedures for application to and participation in the program and to give clear guidance to students and their supervisors as to the requirements for continued participation.
These rules were recommended for circulation by the Committee of Bar Examiners and approved for circulation by the Board of Trustees. When presented to the Board, this rule proposal was packaged with changes to other rules regarding Admissions. This request is only seeking input on the Rules of the State Bar that relate to the Law Office Study Program. The other rule changes are circulating separately.
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For the agenda item comprehensively describing the revisions to the Law Office Study rules and related rule changes, please see: Committee of Bar Examiners agenda item, October 14, 2022.
(These are the rule changes for which public comment is sought)
This item was approved by the Board of Trustees for circulation for public comment as part of a package of several rules proposals which are each being circulated separately. That more condensed description of the Law Office Study proposal is available here.
Board of Trustees
January 31, 2023