California Board of Legal Specialization (CBLS)

Requirements to qualify for certification in California may include:

• At least five years experience during which at least 25 percent of the practice focused on the area of law for which he or she is seeking certification;

• Active membership in the State Bar of California;

• If seeking certification in worker's compensation law, the attorney must be in good standing with the Workers' Compensation Appeals Board;

• If seeking Immigration & Nationality Law certification, the attorney must meet the definition of "attorney" in 8 CFR 1.1(f) and not be under an order of suspension or disbarment by the Board of Immigration Appeals; 

• If seeking certification in Bankruptcy Law, the attorney must be admitted to and in good standing with at least one U.S. District Court in California;

• If the attorney is seeking board certification in Taxation Law, the attorney must not be suspended or disbarred from practicing before the Internal Revenue Service (IRS);

• Performing a minimum number of designated tasks in the particular field of specialization;

• Showing education experience in the field of specialization;

• Passing a written exam;

• Demonstrating proficiency in the area of specialization through independent inquiry and review; and

• Paying the required fees.

Rule 9.35, adopted by the California Supreme Court, contains a provision authorizing the State Bar of California to adopt rules to establish and administer a program to certify legal specialists.

The Rules Governing the State Bar of California Program for Certifying Legal Specialists, adopted by the Board of Governors, contain the details of operation for the program. The Standards for Certification and Re-certification in each specialty area was adopted by the Board of Governors.

The costs of the legal specialization program are entirely paid for by annual fees, as well as certification, re-certification, and accreditation fees. Section 20.8 of the Rules mandate that California's specialization program be self-supporting. The program is not subsidized by the dues collected from attorneys by the California State Bar.

The annual budget for the program is prepared in accordance with the State Bar’s policies and directives and is subject to approval by the State Bar’s Board of Governors. According to the 23rd Annual Report of the CBLS dated May of 2010, for the 2009 calendar year, the total expenses for the program were $1,188,254, compared to the $1,529,052 that was budgeted.

One of the goals of the California Board of Legal Specialization is to give consumers another tool to use in selecting an attorney. Certified Legal Specialists are automatically listed by their specialty on the State Bar website and only certified specialists can be searched by practice area on the State Bar of California website using advanced search features.

The website also contains a separate search function to find a specialist by county. Users can search for anattorney by certified legal specialty area, and by county, with just two simple steps. Visit the State Bar of California's Certified Specialist Search page and select from 11 areas of law, in and out of state.