Except for limited certificates of admission, foreign legal consultants, and pro hac vice admissions, applicants seeking admission to practice law in South Carolina must comply with the requirements set forth in Rule 402 of the South Carolina Appellate Court Rules (SCACR).
Electronic Communications
All information and announcements are posted on the Office of Bar Admissions' webpage at
scbaradmissions.sccourts.org. Applicants are expected to regularly visit this webpage to review
the announcements and information posted there. Applicants are also required to maintain a
current email address and mailing address on their personal bar application account and to
regularly read all mail from the Office of Bar Admissions, whether sent electronically or by the
postal service. Applicants must ensure that emails from the Office of Bar Admissions are not
filtered as spam and should add noreply@scbaradmissions.sccourts.org to their email address
book.
Application for Admission by Uniform Bar Examination (UBE) Transfer
Applications based on an existing UBE Score may be filed at any time. Please be advised that
the existing score must be transferred to South Carolina by the National Conference of Bar
Examiners.
The non-refundable application fee is currently set at $1,000.00. However, all applicants who
have been admitted to practice law for more than one year in another state, the District of
Columbia, or another country at the time the application for admission is filed, must pay an
additional fee of $750.00. If an application is subsequently withdrawn, the Office of Bar
Admissions will not issue a refund or credit the application fee(s) to a future application.
General Requirements for Admission by Uniform Bar Examination (UBE) Transfer
An applicant will not be admitted to practice law in South Carolina based on an existing UBE
score unless the applicant meets the following requirements.
- Is at least twenty-one years of age;
- Is of good moral character;
- Has received a JD or LLB degree from a law school that was approved by the Council of
the Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar of the American Bar
Association at the time the degree was conferred;
- Has been found qualified by a panel of the Committee on Character and Fitness;
- Has, within three years of the date the application is filed, received a score of 266 or
higher on the UBE administered in South Carolina or any other jurisdiction. (For an
examination administered in February, the three-year period begins on March 1
following the examination. For an examination administered in July, the three-year
period begins on August 1 following the examination.);
- Has, within three years of the date the application is filed, received a scaled score of at
least seventy-seven on the MPRE. (The three-year period runs from the date of
administration of the MPRE. While an application for admission will be accepted
without proof of completion of this requirement, applicants are warned that failure to
timely submit proof of completion of this requirement may significantly delay
admission.);
- Is not disbarred, suspended from the practice of law, or the subject of any pending
disciplinary proceeding in another jurisdiction;
- Has successfully completed a Course of Study on South Carolina Law coordinated
through the South Carolina Bar. The content and method of delivery of this Course of
Study shall be determined by the Board of Law Examiners. (The Course of Study may
not be taken prior to the filing of a complete application with the Clerk of the Supreme
Court. Successful completion of the Course of Study may be used for subsequent
applications filed within three years of the date of completion of the Course of Study.
Applicants are warned that the failure to promptly complete this requirement may
significantly delay admission.);
- Has paid all required fees; and
- Has taken the oath or affirmation set forth in Rule 402(h)(3), SCACR.
