Glossary

Terms used on this site.

Pro hac vice

Latin for “for this occasion.” Permission for a lawyer who is not admitted to a court’s bar to appear in one particular case, usually with local counsel and a fee.

Admission on motion

Also called reciprocity or admission without examination. A way for a lawyer already licensed in another state to be admitted without taking the bar exam, usually after several years of practice.

UBE (Uniform Bar Examination)

A bar exam written by the National Conference of Bar Examiners and accepted in many states. A passing score can often be transferred to another UBE state.

UBE score transfer

Using a UBE score earned in one state to apply for a license in another, subject to that state’s minimum score and a time limit on how old the score can be.

MPRE

The Multistate Professional Responsibility Examination, an ethics exam many states require before admission.

Local counsel

A lawyer admitted to the court’s bar who must sign filings or appear alongside a lawyer admitted pro hac vice.

Certificate of good standing

A document from a bar or court confirming a lawyer is licensed and not suspended or disbarred. Courts usually require a recent one.

Reciprocity

An arrangement where one jurisdiction admits lawyers from another only if the other jurisdiction would do the same for its own lawyers.

Federal district court

A trial-level federal court. There are 94, and each keeps its own bar and local rules.

Local rules

Rules a court adopts for its own practice, including who may join its bar and appear pro hac vice.

General admission

Full, ongoing membership in a court’s bar, as opposed to appearing in a single case pro hac vice.

NCBE

The National Conference of Bar Examiners, which writes the UBE and MPRE and runs character and fitness investigations for many states.