Social Security Number �Enter your Social Security Number using numbers only. Disclosure of your Social Security Number is required unless you do not have an SSN, in which case you should check the �No� box at the top of the online application. SSN is required in order to administer the collection of revenue. [42 USC 405(c)(2)(C)(i)] Your SSN will be encrypted and securely transferred to the Board during the transmission of your online application. Your SSN will not be made public. The Board uses the SSN to (1) verify the identity of an individual; (2) to match up the data and documentation received from your law school with your bar exam application; and (3) to match up MBE and MPRE scores received from NCBE with your bar exam file. Your SSN may be furnished to the following agencies and individuals during the processing of your bar application and certification for admission: your law school(s); the National Conference of Bar Examiners; New York State bar admitting authorities including the Appellate Division, Character and Fitness Committees, and the Attorney Registration Unit; and bar admitting agencies in other jurisdictions.
NCBE Number � You must have an NCBE number to complete this application. The NCBE number is an eight digit number beginning with the letter N which you obtain from the NCBE. If you do not yet have an NCBE number, you must close this application, go to www.ncbex.org/ncbe-number, and complete the NCBE number application. You may then return to and complete this bar examination application. If you have questions concerning the NCBE number, please refer to the FAQ section of the NCBE website or contact NCBE. We will be verifying the validity of the NCBE Number you enter on your application. If you enter an invalid NCBE Number your application will be nullified and you may be subject to misconduct charges for furnishing misleading or inaccurate information.
BOLE ID# Every applicant to the bar examination will be assigned a unique BOLE ID# by the Board which will be used for all future correspondence, oral, written or otherwise between the applicant and the Board office. Your SSN will be securely stored and maintained in the Board�s internal applicant records but you will otherwise be identified by your BOLE ID#. If there is ever a need to include your SSN in any correspondence between you and the Board we will conceal the first 5 digits of your SSN (i.e., xxx-xx-1111).
Name - State your legal name exactly as it will appear on the Government issued photo identification that you will present as proof of identification on the date of the examination. The only acceptable forms of photo identification are a U.S. driver's license, a passport or other government issued photo identification. A law school ID is not sufficient. If you do not currently have one of these forms of photo identification it is strongly advised that you make arrangements to obtain the necessary identification before the dates of the examination. If your name should change prior to certification, you must furnish a copy of your name change documentation and include the name that you wish to appear on your admission certificate.
Residence Address� Your residence address is the physical address where you live at the time of this application. You will be seated for the bar examination based on this address. You will be required to certify that this is your residence address. In addition, you may be required to provide proof of your residence address. Providing a false residence address on this application constitutes misconduct under Board Rule 6000.13(a)(1) and may result in penalties up to and including nullification of your examination results. A Post Office Box is not a residence address. If your residence address changes after you make this application and before results are released, you must notify the Board of that change. Address changes should be submitted through the Board�s website at www.nybarexam.org. Please note that you do not need to be a resident of New York State to take the bar examination or to be admitted to the practice of law.
Email Address � The Board sends all correspondence for the bar examination by email. It is essential that you provide a valid email address that you check regularly and which will be active through the administration of the bar examination and the release of bar exam results. If you use an email address provided by your law school, please confirm that you will continue to have access to this email after graduation and through the period when exam results are released. You have a continuing obligation until the release of the exam results to notify the Board of any change in your email address.
Date of Birth/Age- Insert your place of birth, date of birth, and age.
Correspondence Address- If you receive mail at a Post Office Box or other address, you should provide that address in this section.
Employment Address - If you reside out of state but are currently employed full-time in New York State, check the �Yes� box and provide your employment address. If you are not currently employed full-time in New York State, check �No.�
Disability/Test Accommodations � If you are requesting nonstandard test accommodations based on a disability, check the appropriate box and complete and file the separate paper ADA application or reapplication. The application is available as a fillable PDF on the Board�s website. The application is also available in the Test Accommodations Handbook on the Board�s website or by contacting the Board office. The PAPER Application (or Re-Applicant Application) must be received in the Board�s office by the filing deadline (November 30 for a February exam and April 30 for a July exam). Please note that this is NOT a �post-marked� by deadline. A request for nonstandard test accommodations will not be considered unless the appropriate application or reapplication and documentation are properly and timely filed with the Board. NOTE: If a deadline falls on a weekend or holiday, your paper materials must be received by the business day preceding the deadline.
Basis of Qualifications to Sit for the Bar Exam - Check the appropriate box indicating the means by which you are qualifying for the bar examination. If you are unsure of your qualifications to sit for the bar examination, please review Court of Appeals Rule 520, a copy of which is available on the Board�s website at http://www.nybarexam.org/Rules/Rules.htm
Graduation from an ABA approved law school with a Juris Doctor Degree (Court of Appeals Rule 520.3) -Complete this section if you are applying on the basis of a Juris Doctor degree from an ABA approved law school located within the United States. For assistance, please refer to the Instructions for Juris Doctor Applicants Completing Curriculum Questions on Bar Exam Application, which is available at http://www.nybarexam.org/forms/JDCertofAttendanceInstructions.pdf.
Pro Bono Scholars Program � Applicants who applied to and are currently enrolled in the Pro Bono Scholars Program (PBSP) must check yes to this question on the bar exam application. The PBSP is a legal education initiative administered by the Office of Court Administration. Applicants must apply to and be accepted to the program. If accepted, applicants spend 12 weeks working full time in pro bono placement, while also completing an academic component, during their final semester of law school. PBSP participants are eligible to take the February bar examination and, if successful, will be eligible for admission to practice as early as June. More information on the PBSP can be found at http://www.nycourts.gov/ATTORNEYS/probonoscholars/index.shtml.PBSP participants must also provide the necessary law school �proofs,� consisting of a handwriting sample and the �Pro Bono Scholars Program Certificate of Attendance� form, completed by the applicant�s law school, by February 1. In addition, after participants complete the PBSP and receive their Juris Doctor degree, they must provide a �Pro Bono Scholars Program Certificate of Successful Completion� form, also completed by the applicant�s law school. The Board will email these forms to the applicants. While participants will receive their examination results along with other February bar examination takers, they will not be certified to the Appellate Division for admission to practice until the Certificate of Successful Completion of Program form is received in the Board�s office.
Law Office Study(Court of Appeals Rule 520.4) - Complete this section if you are applying on the basis of a combination of approved law school/law office study. Enter the date your law office study commenced. This date can be found on the Certificate of Commencement you filed with the Court of Appeals. Enter the name of the attorney for whom you clerked, and the name and address of the law firm/office. Select the ABA approved law school which you attended from the drop down box. PROOFS REQUIRED: You must file the Applicant's Affidavit of Law Office Study form, a certified copy of the Certificate of Commencement of Clerkship that was filed with the Office of the Clerk of the Court of Appeals, and your handwriting sample certified by the attorney for whom you clerked. The attorney(s) must forward their Attorney�s Affidavit(s) directly to the Board Office. The required proofs must be received at the Board�s office no later than February 1st for the February examination and June 15th for the July examination.
Graduation from an Unapproved Law School with a Juris Doctor Degree (Court of Appeals Rule 520.5) Complete this section if you are applying on the basis of a combination of graduation from an unapproved law school and five years practice in another jurisdiction. In the spaces provided insert the name of the unapproved law school from which you were graduated and the City and State where it is located. Enter the date you graduated with your Juris Doctor. Click the drop down box to choose the jurisdiction where you are admitted to practice. Indicate whether you have been actually practicing law in that jurisdiction for at least five of the seven years preceding this application. PROOFS REQUIRED: (a) Your law school must file the Law School Certificate of Attendance form, a copy of which will be emailed to you after you complete this application. You must file (b) proof of admission to practice in another jurisdiction(s) in the form of Certificate(s) of Good Standing; (c) An affidavit summarizing the basis of your eligibility including the periods and places of your law practice and the dates and names of employers; (d) a minimum of three (3) affidavits from supervising attorneys, partners, judges, etc. confirming that you have been actively practicing law in another jurisdiction for five of the seven years preceding application to the New York bar exam; and (e) your handwriting sample certified by a Notary Public. The required proofs must be received at the Board�s office no later than February 1st for the February examination and June 15th for the July examination.
Foreign Law School Study (Court of Appeals Rule 520.6) � Complete if you are applying on the basis of graduation from a law school outside the United States (which may also require additional study in the US). All applicants applying to sit for the bar examination under Section 520.6 must complete an Online Request for Evaluation of Foreign Academic Credentials and follow the Board's written deadlines for submitting supporting documentation. More detailed information on this section is available by clicking on the Foreign Legal Education section on the Board�s website.
MBE (Multistate Bar Examination) � Indicate the jurisdiction where you plan to sit for the MBE by clicking the appropriate box. If you plan to take the MBE in a jurisdiction other than New York, you must also designate the jurisdiction where you intend to sit for the MBE. If you elect to take the MBE concurrently in another jurisdiction and wish to transfer that score to New York, or you wish to transfer the MBE score taken in New York to another jurisdiction, it is your responsibility to timely request a transfer of the MBE score. To transfer a concurrent score to New York, you must arrange for the transfer of the MBE score. A failure to timely transfer your MBE score to New York (by April 1st for Feb exam; Oct 1st for July exam) will result in the nullification of your bar examination scores. Once your application is complete and you receive the email confirmation, you cannot make any changes to the MBE section of the application.
MPRE � Check the appropriate box to indicate whether you have already taken the MPRE and achieved a passing score for New York or whether you intend to take the MPRE at a future date. Also indicate the month and year when you took the MPRE or when you plan to sit for the MPRE by clicking the drop down boxes.
AUTHORIZATION AND RELEASE PERMITTING THE NEW YORK STATE BOARD OF LAW EXAMINERS TO RELEASE AN APPLICANT�S BAR EXAMINATION SCORES TO THEIR LAW SCHOOL - An increasing number of law schools have asked the Board to share detailed information with the law schools about the performance of their graduates on the bar examination including their graduates� scores on the bar examination. Currently the Board notifies the law schools of their graduates� pass/fail status, and also provides the law schools with copies of the score sheets for their graduates but with the names redacted. It is the Board�s understanding that the law schools would prefer to receive the score sheets with the examinees names in order to assist the law schools in evaluating their academic programs and to assist their students in succeeding on the bar examination. In order to enable the Board to assist your law school in its research we ask that you sign an Authorization and Release permitting the Board to share your bar exam scores with your law school. Carefully review the authorization and check the appropriate box indicating whether you consent or decline to participate.
APPLICATION FEE - The statutory application fee for the New York State bar examination for candidates qualifying for the bar examination under Court of Appeals Rule 520.3 (ABA approved law schools), 520.4 (law office study), and 520.5 (unapproved law schools) is $250. The statutory application fee for candidates qualifying for the bar examination under Rule 520.6 (study of law in a foreign country) is $750. After you complete the application you will be prompted to enter your credit card information. At this time, we only accept Visa and MasterCard cards. Debit cards are not accepted. The application fee is not refundable.
DEADLINE FOR THE RECEIPT OF �PROOFS� CONFIRMING YOUR ELIGIBILITY TO SIT FOR THE BAR EXAMINATION - The �proofs� in support of your eligibility (i.e., Law School Transcripts, Certificate of Law School Attendance, Handwriting Sample , etc.) must be received at the Board's office no later than February 1st for the February examination and June 15th for the July examination. If proofs are to be provided by your law school it is your responsibility to insure that your law school timely forwards the necessary documentation to the Board's office. If your documentation is not timely received at the Board's office your application to sit for the bar examination may be denied.
NOTE: If the deadline falls on a weekend or holiday, the proofs must be received by the business day preceding the deadline.