INSTRUCTIONS FOR APPLICATION FOR DETERMINATION OF MORAL CHARACTER

Please read these instructions carefully. You are required to be aware of and comply with all instructions that follow. Online submission of applications is preferred. You may submit the application in hard copy upon request. If submitted in hard copy, the completed application must be typewritten or legibly printed in ink.

You may only submit an Application for Determination of Moral Character (Determination Application) after you have registered with the State Bar as a law student or attorney applicant. (Rules of State Bar, rule 4.16(B).) The registration application may be completed through the Applicant Portal.

Determination Applications generally will be processed in a minimum of 180 days, or 6 months, after the application is deemed complete. The process may take longer if issues arise that require further investigation and review by the State Bar.

You are encouraged to file a Determination Application before the start of your last year of law study. Failure to timely file an application could delay your admission to practice.

Please consider the following when answering the questions on the Determination Application, as applications are processed in accordance with Title 4, Division 1 of the Rules of the State Bar (Admissions Rules). Current Admissions Rules are available on the State Bar website or upon request from the Office of Admissions.

Rule 4.40 of the Admissions Rules states: (A) An applicant must be of good moral character as determined by the State Bar. Applicants have the burden of establishing that they are of good moral character. (B) “Good moral character” includes but is not limited to qualities of honesty, fairness, candor, trustworthiness, observance of fiduciary responsibility, respect for and obedience to the law, and respect for the rights of others and the judicial process.

Rule 4.42 of the Admissions Rules states: Until an applicant has taken the attorney’s oath pursuant to rule 4.17(A), the applicant has a continuing duty to notify the Office of Admissions when information provided in the Application for Determination of Moral Character has changed or there is new information relevant to the 2 application. The Office of Admissions must be in receipt of the notification from the applicant within 30 days of the change or addition to the information originally submitted. An applicant’s positive moral character determination may be suspended pursuant to rule 4.50 for failure to satisfy this requirement.

It is important to be truthful on the application. The State Bar considers candor to be a significant factor in determining whether an applicant has the good moral character required for admission to practice law.

COMPLETING THE DETERMINATION APPLICATION

Please find information regarding each section of the application below. Please note that all foreign-language documents must be submitted with a certified English translation.

Confidential Questionnaires will be sent by the Office of Admissions to references, employers, licensing agencies, and law schools listed in your application.

General Instructions

The questions on the following pages were contained in your initial Application for Determination of Moral Character. They are repeated here to assist you with updating your application.

List only new incidents or cases in which there has been a change in status since your previously filed application. If you do not have anything to report, please so indicate. You must answer EVERY question, either by supplying new information or indicating that you have no new information to report.

NOTE: Applicants have a continuing duty to update in writing their responses to questions on the moral character section of the application (Section II) whenever there is an addition to or change in information to information that was previously furnished (Rule 4.42 of the Admissions Rules).