Cal. Rules of Prof. Conduct, rule 8.1 · Chapter 8. Maintaining the Integrity of the Profession
False Statement Regarding Application for Admission to Practice Law
Text — 2026 edition, as the State Bar of California publishes it (read October 22, 2026)
(a) An applicant for admission to practice law shall not, in connection with that person’s* own application for admission, make a statement of material fact that the lawyer knows* to be false, or make such a statement with reckless disregard as to its truth or falsity.
(b) A lawyer shall not, in connection with another person’s* application for admission to practice law, make a statement of material fact that the lawyer knows* to be false.
(c) An applicant for admission to practice law, or a lawyer in connection with an application for admission, shall not fail to disclose a fact necessary to correct a statement known* by the applicant or the lawyer to have created a material misapprehension in the matter, except that this rule does not authorize disclosure of information protected by Business and Professions Code section 6068, subdivision (e) and rule 1.6.
(d) As used in this rule, “admission to practice law” includes admission or readmission to membership in the State Bar; reinstatement to active membership in the State Bar; and any similar process relating to admission or certification to practice law in California or elsewhere.
Notes and commentary — not rule text
Comment
[1] A person* who makes a false statement in connection with that person’s* own application for admission to practice law may be subject to discipline under this rule after that person* has been admitted. (See, e.g., In re Gossage (2000) 23 Cal.4th 1080 [99 Cal.Rptr.2d 130].)
[2] A lawyer’s duties with respect to a pro hac vice application or other application to a court for admission to practice law are governed by rule 3.3.
[3] A lawyer representing an applicant for admission to practice law is governed by the rules applicable to the lawyer-client relationship, including Business and Professions Code section 6068, subdivision (e)(1) and rule 1.6. A lawyer representing a lawyer who is the subject of a disciplinary proceeding is not governed by this rule but is subject to the requirements of rule 3.3.
Source of truth
- Edition
- 2026 edition, as the State Bar of California publishes it (read October 22, 2026)
- Official file
- https://www.calbar.ca.gov/sites/default/files/portals/0/documents/rules/Rules-of-Professional-Conduct.pdf (PDF pages 65–66)
- Text hash
- sha256 faba75ffb3675c6e22e42ed88c12c96a22d759fd8207e41725e60bfeecd2d4df
- Composed by
- rpc/build 2026-10-22: the State Bar's 2026 PDF (pages 12-71) read by two readers, PyMuPDF glyph positions and pdfminer with the PDF's tagged structure, agreeing on 834 of 843 paragraphs character for character, the other nine (paragraph boundaries only) resolved against the rendered page; 205,485 printed glyphs accounted for; the State Bar's chapter pages a third reading
This rule cites
Provisions in this library that the text above cites, as it prints each citation. A range cited as “ss. 61.13-61.16” links its first and last provisions.
Business and Professions Code
Procedural information only. Not legal advice and not a substitute for the advice of an attorney. Confirm the current text with the official publisher before relying on it.