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ILLINOIS BOARD of ADMISSIONS to THE BAR

ILLINOIS BOARD of ADMISSIONS to THE BAR

Information & Applications » Rule 715 - For Qualifying Graduates of Foreign Law Schools » Rule 715 Pre-Application Instructions


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ILLINOIS BAR EXAMINATION - JULY 30-31, 2024
Rule 715 Pre-Application Instructions
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Illinois Board of Admissions to the Bar
625 South College Street
Springfield IL 62704
Phone 217-522-5917;
Fax 217-522-3728 and -6589

You will be asked below to acknowledge that you have read and understood these Rule 715 Pre-­Application Instructions before accessing the application forms.

1. TWO-PART APPLICATION. Your bar exam application consists of two equally important parts:
(i) an online application filed on this website and
(ii) paper documents, copies of which may be uploaded via the "Upload New Documents" button upon submission of your completed Application. You will still need to mail originals to the Illinois Board of Admissions to the Bar (IBAB) at the above address.
The paper documents consist of:
(a) Driving record for the last 10 years in all jurisdictions you have held a drivers license.
NOTE: The ability to upload documents will appear AFTER submission of your application
(b) Police reports/citations and court records/documents required as a result of your answers to Character and Fitness questions).
(c) Nonstandard testing accommodation (NTA) forms and documentation, if applicable.
(d) Three​ separate Attorney Verification(s) of Character and Fitness forms, as described in Question 21, Form 21 (iv) of the Character & Fitness questions. These must be completed by three Illinois-licensed attorneys, who are attorneys other than those who complete Proof of Practice Affidavits described in Section (g)(B) below, other than the educational references required in Question 27, and other than the Personal and Professional References listed in Question 26 of the Character and Fitness Questionnaire. They must also be other than employers for former employers and unrelated to you.
Click here for the Attorney Verification of Character and Fitness form.
(e) Proof of legal education.

(i) ​For each law school attended, provide to IBAB a final official transcript, or a statement on the law school’s letterhead, that includes the dates of attendance for each period of study, the courses taken and passed for each period of study, the degree awarded, and the date the degree was conferred. If the transcript does not contain all necessary information, it must be supplemented with a letter. If it is not in English, it must be accompanied by an official translation into English.

(ii) ​If you completed a program of study, including for an LLM or Master’s Degree, at a law school in the U.S. or at a law school in another country, provide to IBAB a final, official transcript from that law school. If a degree was issued, submit proof of receipt of the degree including the date received. If you are still in attendance at such law school, give the name of the school and your program of study with the anticipated completion date.

(iii) ​Provide IBAB a “Course-By-Course” evaluation report of your foreign legal education prepared by Educational Credential Evaluators, Inc. (ECE). The instructions, application and amount of fee to be paid directly to ECE by you are available at www.ece.org. The report must be sent by ECE directly to:

Illinois Board of Admissions to the Bar
625 South College Street
Springfield IL 62704

It is your responsibility to ensure that your law school(s) and the ECE provide the required documentation on your behalf.

(f) Certificate(s) of Licensure. Certificate of the admitting authority in each country and U.S. jurisdiction in which you are licensed, certifying that you have been admitted to, and at the time of making said application are a member in good standing of, the bar of that country and those jurisdictions, and must reflect any history or lack of history of discipline on that license. (Form supplied by the admitting authority.)
(g) Proof of practice affidavits. Proof that you have been actively and continuously engaged in the practice of law under such licenses for at least five of the seven years immediately prior to making application to Illinois. To qualify under Rule 715, applicant must have devoted no fewer than 80 hours per month and 1000 hours per year to the practice of the law of the country and/or United States jurisdiction(s) where licensed.

Such proof shall include the following:

(A) your self-composed personal affidavit giving specific and complete details of the nature (i.e., private practice, in house counsel, government practice, etc.), substance (type of law you practice), extent (number of hours per month, number of hours per year, and number of years) and location (where you practiced) of each position held under your practice under such licenses, and
(B) the self-composed affidavits of no fewer than three lawyers licensed in and engaged in the active and continuous practice of law in the foreign country or U.S. jurisdiction, or in EACH of the foreign countries or U.S. jurisdictions, if more than one, from which your qualifying practice occurred, which affidavits must include specific and complete details of the nature ​(i.e., private practice, in house counsel government practice, etc.), substance​ (type of law you practice), extent​ (number of hours per month, number of hours per year, and number of years) and location​ (where you practiced) of your practice during the period(s) in question, and must describe how they are familiar with you and your legal practice. These affidavits must contain the complete name, address, phone number, and email of the person attesting to your law practice. They must be notarized to be considered qualifying affidavits.

No form is supplied for your personal affidavit or the lawyer affidavits. Each of the affidavits should be drafted by the affiant and based upon his or her own personal knowledge of the matters in question.

2. PHOTOS. Once you have completed the online application and select submit, you will be prompted to upload your photo. This photo is to be of passport quality with a white background and full face view. Non­complying photos will be rejected, and you will be required to upload a new photo. You will not be assigned a seat at the exam until an acceptable uploaded photo is received.

3. ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATION. IBAB communicates primarily in two ways: via your user homepage portal and via the email you provide. We will rarely, if ever, send paper mail. All information and announcements are posted at www.ilbaradmissions.org. It is important that you check this website and your personal IBAB account on a regular basis to review our latest postings. Immediately update contact information on your Personal Info page by using the "Click here to update your login information" link, then direct email me to also advise. Failure to update regarding an email change could result in your missing very important deadlines and information. TIP: Add our web address to your web address book to ensure that your Internet service provider does not filter out emails from IBAB. You are deemed by IBAB to have received and read any email it sends to the email address you have provided.

4. EXAMINATION SCHEDULE.
Tuesday, July 30, 2024, 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.* – Multistate Performance Test (2 question, 90 minutes each); and Multistate Essay Examination (6 questions, 3 hours)
Wednesday, July 31, 2024, 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.* – Multistate Bar Examination (MBE) (200 questions, 6 hours)

You must write both days of the examination.

*Please be aware that you will need to arrive well before the start of the test and that the dismissal times will vary.

5. MULTISTATE PROFESSIONAL RESPONSIBILITY EXAMINATION (MPRE). You must submit proof of a passing MPRE score, which in Illinois is a scaled score of 80 or above. You need not take the MPRE prior to taking the bar exam; however, you will not be eligible for admission to the bar until you have satisfied this requirement.
If you need to register for the MPRE or if you wish to report your MPRE score to IBAB, you may do so on the NCBE website: www.ncbex.org.

6. NONSTANDARD TESTING ACCOMMODATIONS (NTA). Applicants seeking NTA on the basis of a disability must file all properly completed NTA request forms on or before the deadline.

7. FILING FEES AND DEADLINES. Your applicable fee and deadline schedule is based on your status with us:

  • • Persons who have not previously filed an application for an Illinois bar examination
  • • Persons who are repeating the Illinois bar examination
  • • Persons who were absent from an Illinois bar examination

Be sure to select the proper category in order to receive the correct fee and deadline schedule.

8. METHOD OF PAYMENT. Fees may be paid in one of two ways:

  • • By credit or debit card on our website after you have completed your online application. We accept Mastercard, Visa and Discover. A convenience fee will be added to each credit card payment. Warning: If your credit card charge is denied, your application will NOT have been electronically submitted.
  • • By cashier’s check, certified check or money order (US Dollars). The check/money order must accompany your paper documents (see #1, above) and must be postmarked on or before the deadline. As you are responsible for the timely delivery of your payment and documents, we strongly recommend that you use a mail or courier service that will track the delivery of your package.

UNACCEPTABLE forms of payment: personal checks, travelers’ cheques, and corporate and law firm checks

**Pursuant to Illinois Supreme Court Rule 706(j), all fees are nonrefundable and nontransferable.**

9. MISCELLANEOUS – Name on law license, Character and Fitness Committee assignment.

  • • Before filling out your application, please be aware that your NAME will appear on your law license exactly as typed on your application.
  • • The mailing address entered on your application will determine the Character and Fitness judicial district to which you will be assigned. You may be required to appear in your assigned district for a personal interview with a member of the Character and Fitness Committee. Please be advised that regardless of a subsequent relocation on your part, you will not be reassigned to another district once your file has been referred to a Committee member for review.

10. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT. Properly filed applications will be acknowledged by email within 2-­4 weeks of receipt.

I have read and understand these instructions.
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