Rule SCR 2.014 - Legal education(1) Every applicant for admission to the Kentucky Bar must have completed degree requirements for a J.D. or equivalent professional degree from a law school approved by the American Bar Association or by the Association of American Law Schools.(2) Prior to or at the time of the examination, each applicant shall certify that he or she has successfully completed a course of study in law school in the subject of ethics, and that if admitted to practice, the applicant will adhere to the Code of Ethics prescribed by the Supreme Court. The Character and Fitness Committee of the Kentucky Office of Bar Admissions may, in exceptional cases, waive the requirement that an applicant have successfully completed a course of study in law school in the subject of ethics.(3) An attorney who received a legal education in the United States but is not eligible for admission by virtue of not having attended a law school approved by the American Bar Association or the Association of American Law Schools may nevertheless be considered for admission by examination provided the attorney satisfies the following requirements:(a) The attorney holds a J.D. Degree, which is not based on study by correspondence, study online, or distance learning from a law school accredited in the jurisdiction where it exists and which requires the equivalent of a three-year course of study that is the substantial equivalent of the legal education provided by approved law schools located in Kentucky. The applicant shall bear the cost of the evaluation of his/her legal education, as determined by the Board, and the application shall not be processed until the applicant's legal education is approved by the Board of Bar Examiners; and(b) The attorney has been actively and substantially engaged in lawful practice of law as his or her principal business or occupation for at least three of the last five years immediately preceding the filing of the application; and(c) In evaluating the education received the Board of Bar Examiners shall consider, but not be limited to, such factors as the admission of the applicant to the bar of another state or the District of Columbia, the similarity of the curriculum taken to that offered in law schools approved by the American Bar Association or by the Association of American Law Schools, and that the school at which the applicant's legal education was received has been examined and approved by other state bar associations examining the legal qualifications of non-ABA law school graduates.(d) The attorney meets all other requirements contained in the Rules of the Supreme Court of Kentucky pertaining to Admission of Persons to Practice Law.(4) An attorney who received a legal education in a foreign country and is not eligible for admission by virtue of not having attended a law school approved by the American Bar Association or the Association of American Law Schools may nevertheless be considered for admission by examination provided the attorney satisfies the following requirements: (a) The foreign attorney's legal education is the substantial equivalent of the legal education provided by approved law schools located in Kentucky. The applicant shall bear the cost of the evaluation of their legal education, as determined by the Board, and the application shall not be processed until the applicant's legal education is approved by the Board of Bar Examiners.(b) In evaluating the education received the Board of Bar Examiners shall consider, but not be limited to, such factors as the admission of the applicant to the bar of another state or the District of Columbia, the similarity of the curriculum taken to that offered in law schools approved by the American Bar Association or by the Association of American Law Schools, that the school at which the applicant's legal education was received has been examined and approved by other state bar associations examining the legal qualifications of foreign law school graduates, and the applicant's proficiency in written and spoken English.(c) The applicant shall, in order to qualify to sit for the Bar examination, also submit a certified copy of the record or license of the court or agency which admitted the applicant to practice law in such country, and satisfy the requirement that the applicant has been actively and substantially engaged in the lawful practice of law as his or her principal business or occupation for at least three of the last five years immediately preceding the filing of the application, in addition to any other requirements authorized by these rules.(5) For purposes of (3)(b) and (4)(c), the active engagement in the teaching of the law, full time at an American Bar Association accredited law school, shall be considered active engagement in the practice of law.Ky. R. Sup. Ct. SCR 2.014
Amended by order 2020-60, eff. 9/1/2020; Amended by order 2017-18, eff. 1/1/2018; amended by Order 2012-01, eff, 3/1/2012; prior amendment eff. 1/1/2002 (Order 2001-2), 2/1/2000 (Order 99-1); Adopted by Order 92-1, eff. 8/1/1992.