California Bar Takers Who Fail February Exam Can Get Free Retake

California State Bar trustees budgeted $3.1 million for fee waivers to allow examinees who fail or withdraw from the February 2025 licensing exam to take the Bar for free in July, after applicants brought a flood of complaints over the test’s rollout.

The waivers budgeted Friday evening at a Board of Trustees meeting erase nearly all of a rare surplus in the State Bar’s 2025 admissions fund, though the fund balance will still likely sit above the Bar’s target. The brand-new, California-specific exam was developed in part to stave off insolvency for the Bar’s admissions fund.

• The move was approved ...