Rhode Island Bar Association
Encyclopedia
Bar association
A bar association is a professional body of lawyers. Some bar associations are responsible for the regulation of the legal profession in their jurisdiction; others are professional organizations dedicated to serving their members; in many cases, they are both...
of the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Rhode Island
Rhode Island
The state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...
.
Organization
The Rhode Island Bar Association was founded in 1898. The Association offers Continuing Legal EducationContinuing Legal Education
Continuing legal education is professional education of lawyers that takes place after their initial admission to the bar. In many states in the United States, CLE participation is required of attorneys to maintain their license to practice law...
classes and other opportunities for attorneys in Rhode Island. As of 2008, RIBAR has over 6,000 members. Membership and dues to the bar association are mandatory, and bar association fees are in addition to licensing fees charged by the Rhode Island Supreme Court
Rhode Island Supreme Court
The Rhode Island Supreme Court, founded in 1747, is the court of last resort in the U.S. State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations. The Court consists of a chief justice and four associate justices. The current Justices of the Rhode Island Supreme Court are:*Chief Justice Paul A...
. Rhode Island also requires members to attend mandatory CLE classes.
Bar Exam
All attorneys licensed to practice in the state belong to the Rhode Island Bar Association after passing the bar examinationBar examination
A bar examination is an examination conducted at regular intervals to determine whether a candidate is qualified to practice law in a given jurisdiction.-Brazil:...
. As of 2009 the bar exam in Rhode Island tests knowledge of the common law
Common law
Common law is law developed by judges through decisions of courts and similar tribunals rather than through legislative statutes or executive branch action...
through the Multistate Bar Exam and Multistate Essay Exam, and the exam tests Rhode Island law on the state essay portion. The exam also includes a practical component, the Multistate Performance Test. Applicants must also pass the MPRE ethics exam, pass a background check
Background check
A background check or background investigation is the process of looking up and compiling criminal records, commercial records and financial records of an individual....
, and pay all necessary fees.