Foreign Education

If you have been fully admitted to the practice of law in any U.S. or foreign jurisdiction, you are qualified to take the California Bar Examination without additional legal education.

Applicants with foreign legal education who are not admitted to practice law in any U.S. or foreign jurisdiction may still qualify to take the California Bar Exam by following the steps below. Please see rule 4.30 of the Rules of the State Bar.

The requirements are different for those who have received a first degree in law from a law school in a foreign jurisdiction than for those who may have completed study in a foreign law school but did not receive a degree.

Foreign law students with a first degree in law

If you received your first degree in law from a law school outside the U.S., you must establish your eligibility to take the California Bar Exam by showing that your degree is equivalent to a Juris Doctor (JD) degree awarded by a law school approved by the American Bar Association (ABA) or accredited in California by the State Bar.

If you received your first degree in law from a law school outside the U.S., you must establish your eligibility to take the California Bar Exam by showing that your degree is:

  • Equivalent to a Juris Doctor (JD) degree awarded by a law school approved by the American Bar Association (ABA) or accredited in California by the State Bar; or
  • Meets the educational requirements for admission to practice law in the foreign state or country in which it was obtained.

This can be achieved by obtaining and providing an evaluated course breakdown of all foreign legal education and a Foreign Law Study Evaluation Summary form completed by a credential evaluation agency approved by the State Bar. A detailed, course-by-course evaluation report is required.

You must also successfully complete a year of law study at an ABA-approved law school or a California-accredited law school as specified in the Guidelines for Foreign-Educated General Applicants with a First Degree In Law.

Before you can apply to take the California Bar Exam, you must first register as a law student with the State Bar’s Office of Admissions. The application is available in the Applicant Portal.

For the Office of Admissions to confirm your eligibility to take the California Bar Exam, you must mail an official sealed transcript(s) to the Office of Admissions at 845 S. Figueroa Street, Los Angeles, CA 90017 once you have completed your LLM studies. Please note that electronic transcripts will not be accepted.

You are encouraged to view the scope of the California Bar Exam to ensure that you have completed the required bar-tested subjects.

Foreign law students without a first degree in law

If you completed your legal education outside the U.S. without receiving a qualifying first degree in law, follow the steps below to become eligible to take the California Bar Exam.

You must:

  1. Show that you have successfully completed the equivalent of two years of undergraduate studies by providing an evaluated course breakdown of all post-secondary education and a Foreign Law Study Evaluation Summary form completed by a credential evaluation agency approved by the State Bar. A detailed, course-by-course evaluation report is required.
  2. Pass the First-Year Law Students’ Examination or establish exemption from the exam after completing your first year of law study in a JD degree program at either an ABA-approved or California-accredited law school.
  3. Earn a JD degree from an ABA-approved or California-accredited law school or complete four years of legal studies in the U.S. at a State Bar-registered law school, or through the Law Office Study Program.

Register as a law student with the State Bar’s Office of Admissions in the Applicant Portal once you have established that your foreign legal education is the equivalent of two years of undergraduate studies, and you have started your law studies in the U.S.

Note: Information provided by a credential evaluation agency regarding the completion of a law degree and number of years of study is considered advisory; the State Bar reserves the right to make the final decision with regard to law study equivalency and how much credit the student will receive toward qualifying to take the California Bar Exam. 

For questions, please contact the Office of Admissions at eligibility@calbar.ca.gov or call a Contact Center representative at 800-843-9053.

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