The Louisiana Bar Examination is the longest bar exam in the US and is administered by The Louisiana Supreme Court Committee on Bar Admissions (LASCBA). Louisiana is one of the few remaining states to have not adopted the Uniform Bar Examination (UBE®) and one of the only two jurisdictions that have not adopted the Multistate Bar Examination (MBE®). The unique format and content of the LA Bar Exam make it evermore important to understand exactly what to expect.
Fortunately, this article does exactly that. Read on and learn everything you need to know about Louisiana Bar Exam pass rates, application deadlines, eligibility requirements, reciprocity, score transfer, fees, subjects, format, and more.
The Louisiana Bar Exam structure consists of two parts administered over three days:
Exam days are Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Each day consists of three tests. The schedule is as follows:
| Schedule 1 (8 am -10 am) | Schedule 2 (10:30 am - 12:30 pm) | Schedule 3 (2 pm - 5 pm) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | Civil Code I | Civil Code II | Civil Code III |
| Wednesday | LA Code of Civil Procedure | Torts | Business Entities |
| Friday | Constitutional Law | Criminal Law, Procedure & Evidence | Federal Jurisdiction & Procedure |
The Committee refers to the MPRE as "Part II" of the bar exam on its website. However, you must register for MPRE and release your score to Louisiana separately, as the exam is administered by the National Conference of Bar Examiners (NCBE®).
Aside from saving you stress, preparing your application for the Louisiana Bar Exam and submitting it before the first filing deadline will also save you from paying an $850 late filing fee—that’s double the cost of timely filing. See below for important deadlines, dates, and fees.
Louisiana law students must register in the Law Student Registration Program (LSR) and complete their online "NCBE Character Report Application" in the fall (August 1 - October 1) of their second year of law school through the LASCBA website. In the third year of law school, applicants must request a "Preparation of Character Report from the NCBE" and complete the "Louisiana-Specific Criminal Background Form."
LA law students who fail to register for the LSR on time must pay a $350 fee and will have to file as first-time applicants rather than as Louisiana law students. First-time applicants must register and prepare all the same documents and applications except for the LSR. Failure to meet the timely filing registration deadline will result in an $850 late filing fee for all applicants.
See the following table for all application filing periods and deadlines.
| Deadline to Register for the Louisiana Bar Exam 2024 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Filing Periods | February 19, 21, 23, 2024 | July 22, 24, 26, 2024 |
| First Filing Period | September 1, 2023 to November 2, 2023 | December 1, 2023 to February 1, 2024 |
| Late Filing Period | November 3, 2023 to December 15, 2023 | February 2, 2024 to May 15, 2024 |
| Re-application Period | September 1, 2023 to December 15, 2023 | Dec. 1, 2023 to May 15, 2024 |
Those who fail the LA Bar Exam can re-apply within the reapplication period but must submit a new NCBE Application for Character Report if their former report is over two years old.
To be eligible to sit for the LA Bar Exam, applicants must meet the following requirements:
To schedule your Louisiana Bar Exam appointment, you must create a LASCBA account and select your desired exam administration. You must also submit your Louisiana-Specific Criminal Background Form and your NCBE Character Report Application.
Fees and costs associated with registering for the Louisiana Bar Exam vary depending on the examinee's status (in-state law student, first-time applicant, in-house counsel, etc.) and the date by which they file. Below is a detailed and up-to-date list of exam-related fees.
| Application Fees | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| LA Law Students | $850 | ||
| First Time Apps | $975 | ||
| Re-Applicants | $975 | ||
| Foreign Educated | $975 | ||
| In-House Counsel | $975 | ||
| Other Application Fees | |||
| LA-Criminal Background Check | $39.25 | ||
| Fingerprinting | $10 | ||
| Equivalency Application (Foreign Educated) | $300 | ||
| Law School Registration (2nd year) | $150 | ||
| Character and Fitness (JB/LL.B will be awarded in over 1 year) | $275 | ||
| Character and Fitness (JB/LL.B will be awarded in under 1 year) | $395 | ||
| Character and Fitness (JB/LL.B will be awarded in under 1 year) | $550 | ||
| Character and Fitness (Law degree not obtained in US) | $925 | ||
| Late Fees | |||
| Law Student Registration | $350 | ||
| Bar Exam App. | $875 | ||
Application fees are made through your LASCBA application portal. Fingerprint and background fees must be made by money order, cashier’s check, or business check. Character and Fitness Application fees are handled by the NCBE.
When all is said and done, costs for taking the Louisiana Bar Exam can easily exceed a thousand dollars. Fortunately, there are cost-saving options available. For example, Southern University Law Center offers incoming first-year students scholarships based on their undergraduate records and other factors. If you aren't an incoming first-year student, there are still a number of scholarships granted to students every year.
The Louisiana Bar Exam covers nine subjects, over half of which involve Civil Code. See below for a brief outline of what each subject covers.
| Civil Code | Subjects |
|---|---|
| Civil Code I | Persons and family law |
| Civil Code II | Interstate distribution |
| Civil Code III | Code and related Ancillaries |
| Louisiana Code of Civil Procedure | Any part of the Code of Civil Procedure |
| Torts | Areas of questions on Civil Code Articles |
| Business Entities and Negotiable Instruments | Provisions of the Louisiana Revised Statutes and the Louisiana Civil Code in relation to business entities |
| Constitutional Law | Constitutional areas that are commonly encountered over the course of one's legal career in Louisiana |
| Criminal Law, Procedure, and Evidence | Questioning on substantive criminal law and procedure |
| Federal Jurisdiction and Procedure | Jurisdiction of federal courts, the federal judicial system, and the law governing proceedings in such courts |
The Louisiana Bar Exam is graded by anonymous members of the Louisiana Bar who are appointed by the Louisiana Supreme Court. Each one of the nine tests contained in the written exam is worth 100 raw points. Exams 1-5 (code exams) are worth twice the weight of exams 6-9 (non-code exams).
You must earn a total minimum weighted score of 650 out of 900 to pass. This does not mean that you can earn 65 out of 100 on each test and pass. Remember, code exams are double the weight, so your raw score on these subjects will comprise a higher percentage of your total score.
Before you can practice law in Louisiana, you must also pass the Multistate Professional Responsibility Examination (MPRE®) with a minimum score of 80. The MPRE features 60 multiple-choice questions administered over two hours. Check out our article, About the MPRE, to learn more about the mandatory exam.
Study with the best practice questions, study guides, and engaging lectures. And the best part: It's FREE!
As is typical with bar exams across the country, the Louisiana Bar Exam's repeater pass rate is markedly lower than the first-timer pass rate. This phenomenon is likely because many examinees who failed the first time haven't changed their study habits significantly.
| Exam | Overall Pass Rate | First-Timer Pass Rate | Repeater Pass Rate | Results Release Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| July 2023 | 70% | 75% | 40% | October 6 |
| Feb. 2023 | 42% | 49% | 38% | April 21 |
Below are the annual pass rates for the LA Bar Exam since 2017, divided into first-time examinees and repeaters:
| Exam | First Timers | Repeaters | Overall | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | No Of Candidates | Pass Rate | No. Of Candidates | Pass Rate | No. Of Candidates | Pass Rate |
| 2022 | 485 | 73% | 131 | 31% | 616 | 64% |
| 2021 | 630 | 74% | 195 | 35% | 825 | 64% |
| 2020 | 201 | 60% | 283 | 52% | 484 | 55% |
| 2019 | 540 | 74% | 195 | 41% | 735 | 65% |
| 2018 | 592 | 75% | 198 | 40% | 790 | 66% |
| 2017 | 561 | 77% | 254 | 50% | 815 | 68% |
Louisiana typically releases bar exam results 2-3 months following the administration of an exam and posts them to the Louisiana Supreme Court website.
Louisiana requires second-year Louisiana law students to register for the LSR program and submit a Request for Preparation of Character Report through the NCBE. Students who fail to register must apply to the Louisiana Bar Exam as first-time applicants. Furthermore, Louisiana has not adopted the UBE or any of its components.
Foreigners may sit for the Louisiana Bar Exam. Applicants that have graduated from non-US law schools must submit an application of equivalency determination to the Committee no later than August 1 or December 1 for the February or July exam, respectively. Furthermore, they must prove that they have successfully completed at least 14 semester hours in any of the following subjects at an ABA-approved law school:
There are significant differences between civil law and common law in Louisiana and the rest of the US due to influences rooted in its former occupation by Spain and France. The "civilian" tradition is still apparent in aspects of Louisiana criminal law and private law. These historical influences have made the Louisiana Bar Exam one of the most unique of any US jurisdiction. For example, Louisiana is only one of two jurisdictions that have not adopted the MBE, the other is Puerto Rico.
If you have any questions, you can contact the Louisiana Supreme Court Committee on Bar Admissions using the information below.
