Louisiana

Verified

Imported 2026-09-27 — not yet reviewed; confirm with the admitting authority.

How to apply

Admitting agencyLouisiana Committee on Bar Admissions

Application portalApply online

Character & fitnessApplication process managed by the jurisdiction's bar admission agency; many jurisdictions use NCBE's Character & Fitness application/investigation as part of the exam application (timing: filed together with or shortly after the bar exam application). Verify exact process/timing per jurisdiction at the agency_url.

Exam & score rules

Exam typeLocal (jurisdiction-drafted, non-UBE) exam; no NextGen UBE adoption announced

UBE min scoreN/A (jurisdiction-drafted exam; min score —)

MPRE requiredyes (min: 80)

Education requirementABA-approved J.D. required; no alternative domestic legal-education pathway reported. Foreign-law graduates may be eligible (see jurisdiction rules).

Other required components

Local law componentLouisiana Bar Examination is a jurisdiction-drafted exam heavily focused on Louisiana Civil Code / civil law subjects (not the UBE, no MEE/MPT); distinct Louisiana-law essay components administered by the Committee on Bar Admissions.

Other pathsNo diploma privilege or supervised-practice pilot identified. Louisiana is the only jurisdiction in this list that has NOT announced a NextGen UBE adoption date and does not offer legacy UBE score transfer or admission on motion (admission on motion rules = No per NCBE).

Transfer options

Accepts transferred UBEno

UBE transfer acceptedno

Score age limitn/a (not a UBE jurisdiction)

Admission on motion

Allows AOMno

Reciprocal onlyConfirm with the admitting authority.

Years of practiceConfirm with the admitting authority.

AOM feen/a - no AOM

Other requirementsCivil-law jurisdiction; distinct bar exam covering Louisiana Civil Code. No admission on motion; no UBE.

Official AOM source

Essays & sample answers

Publishes past essaysyes

Years availableJuly 2021 through July 2025 confirmed (individual PDFs per administration hosted on LSU Law Digital Commons, in partnership with the Louisiana Supreme Court Committee on Bar Admissions)

Sample answersunclear from search snippets alone — files are titled '<Month Year> Louisiana Bar Exam' (need to open PDF to confirm whether model/sample answers are included alongside questions)

Exam typeNon-UBE (Louisiana civil-law essay exam; does not use MEE/MPT/MBE)

Terms of useLSU Digital Commons hosts these as official filings of the Louisiana Supreme Court Committee on Bar Admissions; standard academic repository terms apply (check page for reuse conditions)

Essay archive / sample answers Essay archive / sample answers

Louisiana is a well-known strong example of essay publication, though verification here relied on search snippets/titles rather than opening each PDF to confirm sample-answer inclusion.

Fees & deadlines

Feesfirst_time_applicant: $850 / $975; attorney_applicant: $975; repeater: $975; laptop_fee: $136; admission_on_motion_fee: —

Application deadlinesjuly_2026_regular: Feb. 1; july_2026_late: May 15; february_2027_regular: Nov. 1; february_2027_late: Dec. 15

Next exam datesjuly_2026: Scheduled (standard UBE/local administration); february_2027: Scheduled (standard UBE/local administration); nextgen_first_administration: Not applicable (no NextGen adoption announced); legacy_ube_final_administration: Not applicable

Possible multi-bar pathways

Researched examples that name Louisiana. Discovery content only — not eligibility approval.

NextGen holdouts / non-adopters to date

California has set NextGen UBE first administration as July 2028 but is TBA on whether/when it will accept transferred scores, since CA does not participate in general reciprocity or UBE score transfer at all — CA's 'NextGen' adoption changes only the CA-administered exam content, not CA's zero-reciprocity policy. Louisiana, as a civil-law jurisdiction with its own distinct exam, is not on the UBE/NextGen track in the same way.

Official sources

Source 1 Source 2 Source 3 Source 4 Source 5 Source 6 Source 7 Source 8 Source 9

Non-UBE, jurisdiction-drafted exam; per NCBE data, Louisiana has not announced NextGen UBE adoption (unlike nearly every other jurisdiction in this set).

VerdictUp is a study aid and does not provide legal advice or guarantee admission. Confirm with the admitting authority.