NextGen or Homegrown? California’s Bar Exam Fork in the Road
- Tommy Sangchompuphen
- 5 days ago
- 1 min read
California is officially in “pick a path” mode for what comes after the Multistate Bar Examination (the current NCBE-licensed multiple-choice portion of the bar exam) is eliminated with the July 2028 bar exam.
State bar leaders recently advanced two different routes for deeper study.
Option 1: Go National (NextGen UBE, no California add-on)
One track is to adopt the NCBE’s NextGen Uniform Bar Exam without a California-specific component.
Supporters point to the benefits you’d expect: a heavily tested/validated exam, broader prep infrastructure, and, importantly, less “we’re building the plane while flying it.”
Option 2: Go Custom (Kaplan questions / California-built future)
The other track keeps the door open to a California-specific exam path, including the possibility of using non-NCBE-developed questions while the state figures out its long-term plan.
Because of notice requirements, California needs to land on a recommendation in time for the California Supreme Court to act by July 2026.
