Admission by Motion FAQs
Frequently Asked Questions
Among other requirements (set out in full in CT Practice Book) an applicant must be licensed in at least one reciprocal jurisdiction, and have been lawfully engaged in the practice of law as the applicant’s principal means of livelihood for five out of the last ten years.
The reciprocal jurisdictions (subject to change) are:
- Alabama
- Alaska
- Arkansas
- Colorado
- District of Columbia
- Georgia
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Maine
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- Nebraska
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- New York
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Utah
- Vermont
- Virgin Islands, US
- Virginia
- Washington
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
- Wyoming
All other jurisdictions have been determined to be non-reciprocal
Educational qualification for admission without examination - All applicants for admission without examination must have a JD from an approved law school, or foreign legal education approved by the Bar Examining Committee pursuant to Art. II-3 of the CBEC regulations. All ABA-approved law schools are also approved by the Committee. In addition, the Committee has approved the Massachusetts School of Law. Non-approved law degrees or LLM degrees do not qualify.
Reciprocity is determined as of the date the applicant files an application for admission.- The non-refundable fee for admission without examination is $1,800.00 payable by certified check or money order. The application, instructions and related forms are available in PDF format.
- Completing the application for admission without examination is only one step in the admission process and does not automatically entitle the candidate to practice law in Connecticut. The Committee begins the review of a candidate’s character and fitness immediately upon the filing of the application for admission to the bar. However, the Committee will usually only conduct a hearing after the candidate’s file is complete. While the Committee attempts to have all eligible candidates admitted soon after completion of each candidate’s application, a candidate whose application presents complex or unresolved issues of character and/or fitness will not be admitted until such issues have been resolved to the Committee’s satisfaction. (See Article VI in Regulations)
- What happens after I complete my application? Completing your application is only one half of the process leading to admission to the Connecticut bar. All candidates for admission without examination also undergo an intensive character and fitness investigation. Once a candidate has completed his/her application in a timely manner and has cleared the character and fitness investigation, arrangements will be made so that the candidate may be sworn in by the clerk of the Superior Court for the county in which the candidate seeks admission.