Official Government Website

Admission for Experienced Attorneys

***On December 28, 2023, the Idaho Supreme Court entered an Order amending the Idaho Bar Commission Rules governing admission to practice law in Idaho. The amendments are effective March 1, 2024. The amendments eliminate the reciprocity requirement under current Idaho Bar Commission Rule 206 and provide that any attorney from any state who has been substantially engaged in the Active Practice of Law for at least three of the previous five years may be admitted to the practice of law in Idaho without having to take the Idaho bar examination. The amendments further provide that work as a judicial law clerk qualifies as the Active Practice of Law for the purposes of qualifying for admission without examination, provided such work was performed after admission to practice and as a licensed, active member of the jurisdiction in which the work was performed. You can find the Court’s Order HERE.***

Admission Based on Practice Experience – Idaho Bar Commission Rule 206

Qualifications. In order to be admitted to practice law without taking the Idaho bar examination, an Experienced Attorney Applicant must show to the satisfaction of the Board that he or she:

  1. Has met the qualifications for admission under Rule 202;
  2. Has passed a written bar examination and was admitted as an attorney by the highest court in any state or territory of the United States or the District of Columbia;
  3. Has been substantially engaged in the Active Practice of Law for no less than three of the five years immediately preceding the Application. For purposes of this rule, substantial engagement in the Active Practice of Law includes:
    1. Attorneys who are licensed in Idaho as house counsel under Rule 225. Practice of law in Idaho as house counsel without an Idaho house counsel license does not satisfy the requirements of this subsection;
    2. Attorneys who are  Judges, administrative judges or the equivalent thereof in another jurisdiction, of a court of general or appellate jurisdiction of any state or territory of the United States, the District of Columbia or federal court in the United States;
    3. Service as a judicial law clerk in a local, state, territorial, or federal court of record in the United States, which service was performed after admission to practice and as a licensed, active member of the jurisdiction in which the service was performed; or
    4. Attorneys who are employed by and teaching full-time in an Approved Law School;
  4. Possesses the moral character and fitness required of all other Applicants for admission;
  5. Has paid all required Application fees and costs; and
  6. Has not failed a bar examination in the five years immediately preceding the Application.

The burden of proof is on the applicant to establish by clear and convincing evidence that he or she meets each of the above requirements.

Legal Intern or Pro Hac Vice.  The time an attorney practices or practiced in Idaho under Rule 226 or 227 does not independently qualify as time substantially engaged in the Active Practice of Law.

Time and Manner for Admission.  Experienced Attorney Applicants shall be admitted as provided in Rule 220.

The application process could take from 60 to 90 days to complete.  The application fee is $1,200.00.  If you have questions about the application process or the admission requirements, please contact Maureen Ryan Braley, Associate Director, or Belinda Brown, Admissions Analyst, at (208) 334-4500.

The text of the experienced attorney admission rule is in Idaho Bar Commission Rule 206.


Steps for Admission

Listed below are the steps for Admission to the Idaho State Bar as an Experienced Attorney Applicant.  The application process could take from 60 to 90 days to complete.

  1. When an application has been processed and approved, the Idaho State Bar notifies the Idaho Supreme Court that the applicant is eligible for admission.
  2. When the Idaho State Bar receives the Order of Admission, the Admissions Department sends the applicant license forms to be completed and returned to the Idaho State Bar, along with a letter giving instructions for admission to the Idaho Supreme Court and the United States District Court.
  3. After the Idaho State Bar has received and processed the license forms, the applicant is eligible for admission.  Applicant must first be admitted through the Idaho Supreme Court before being eligible to be admitted to the United States District Court.
  4. Applicants must appear in person at the Idaho Supreme Court in Boise to be sworn-in.  Please note that applicants have six months from the date of the Order of Admission to be sworn-in.  Idaho Bar Commission Rule 220.
  5. Pursuant to Idaho Bar Commission Rule 402, within 12 months of admission to the Idaho State Bar, each new Idaho lawyer is required to complete the New Admittee Education Requirement, which entails completion of 10 New Admittee Credit (NAC) approved CLE credits, including 4 courses fulfilling the Idaho Substantive Law Requirement.  NAC-Approved courses and courses satisfying the Idaho Substantive Law Requirement are available streaming online at isb.fastcle.com.

If you have questions about the application process or the admission requirements, please contact Maureen Ryan Braley, Associate Director, or Belinda Brown.

If you have questions about the New Admittee Education Requirement, please contact Teresa Baker, Program & Legal Education Director.

If you have questions about CLE requirements, please contact Maureen Ryan Braley.

Application

Apply for admission in Idaho using the Idaho State Bar Admissions Application. Click HERE for the application, instructions on how to complete the application, and other required forms.

Questions about the application process? Contact Maureen Ryan Braley, Associate Director, or Belinda Brown, Admissions Analyst, at (208) 334-4500.

Applicants

The following experienced attorneys applied for admission to practice law in Idaho:

1/1/24-1/31/24

Britt Bachtel-Browning 

aka Britt Bachtel 

Catholic University of America, Columbus School of Law

Coeur d’Alene, ID

Sharon Ann Bauman 

aka Sharon Park 

aka Sharon  Bauman 

University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Wm S. Boyd School of Law

Las Vegas, NV

Lonny Dean Bauscher 

University of Idaho College of Law

Cashmere, WA

Kimberly Marie Carrubba Cummings 

aka Kimberly Marie Carrubba 

University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law

Reno, NV

Michael  Dismukes 

aka Drake University Law School

Coeur d’Alene, ID

Raymond Brett Evanson 

University of Idaho College of Law

Malad, ID

Conor  Gilligan 

Loyola Law School

Las Vegas, NV

Jacob Blayne Jensen 

Washburn University School of Law

Sandy, UT

Kathleen A McCallister 

aka Kathleen A McMahon 

Loyola University Chicago School of Law

Meridian, ID

Michael Raymond Merritt 

Gonzaga University School of Law

Liberty Lake, WA

Marcus Rockwell Morrow 

Loyola University Chicago School of Law

Chicago, IL
Jonathan William Nightingale 

Santa Clara University School of Law

Burlingame, CA

Garry James Rhoden 

University of Florida, Frederic G. Levin College of Law

Craig, CO

Ryan  Shores 

University of LaVerne College of Law

Meridian, ID

Paul  Southwick 

aka Paul  Evergreen 

The University of Michigan Law School

Boise, ID

Wade  Taylor 

Seton Hall University School of Law

Salt Lake City, UT

Shawn Adrian Toliver 

University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law

Eagle, ID

Nicholas Paul Triplett 

Willamette University College of Law

Fair Oaks, CA

Michael Adam Zarian 

The University of Chicago Law School

Lewisville, TX

Address Change

It is important that you keep your mailing and email addresses up to date with the Idaho State Bar so we can make sure you receive important information.  Please contact Belinda Brown to update your address.


Request a Copy of a Previously Filed Application

The Idaho State Bar charges a $25.00 fee for all copies of previously filed applications. To obtain a copy or copies of your application, please submit a written request accompanied by the $25.00 fee for each copy to:

Admissions Department
Idaho State Bar
PO Box 895
Boise, ID  83701

Be sure to list the name and mailing address for the receipt of each copy and whether a certified statement should accompany the copy.

ver: 3.5.1 | last updated: