Rule 1.3 - Requirements for admission(a) Applications. (1) Each applicant for admission to the bar shall file either:(i) a verified, typewritten or machine printed application with the Clerk on the forms furnished by the Board in accordance with Board's Rules of Procedure or (ii) a completed electronic application through the Judiciary Electronic Filing System.(2) At a minimum, the forms shall require the applicant to submit:(i) his or her name and date of birth, (ii) his or her last place of residence,(iii) the character and term of his or her study,(iv) the institution of law from which he or she graduated and with what degree, (v) the names of all courts to which he or she has made applications to practice, (vi) the dates of applications to practice,(vii) the dates of examinations and the dates of admission to practice, (viii) whether he or she has been the subject of any investigation or proceeding for professional misconduct, (ix) whether he or she has ever been rejected upon an application to practice before any court, and (x) information required by the Board that relates to the applicant's character and fitness to practice law.(b) Legal Education or Experience Requirements. (1) Unless otherwise provided by this rule, to be eligible for examination and admission to the bar, each applicant shall have graduated from a law school accredited by the Council of the American Bar Association on Legal Education and Admission to the Bar (accredited law school) with a J.D. or L.L.B. degree. The applicant shall have his or her first professional legal degree (J.D. or L.L.B.) from an accredited law school to satisfy the legal education requirement. A graduate degree in law (L.L.M., M.C.L., S.J.D.) is not a satisfactory substitute for the J.D. or L.L.B. degree. (2) An attorney who is not a graduate of an accredited law school but who is admitted to practice before the highest court of another state, a territory, or the District of Columbia, shall be eligible for examination and admission, provided that he or she has actively practiced law in such state, territory or the District of Columbia for five of the six years immediately preceding his or her application.(3) An attorney admitted to practice and is in good standing before the highest court of a foreign country, where the English common law substantially forms the basis of that country's jurisprudence, and where English is the language of instruction and practice in the courts of that jurisdiction, shall be eligible for examination and admission provided he or she presents satisfactory proof that he or she has actively practiced law in such jurisdiction for five of the six years immediately preceding his or her application.(4) Service as a judge of a court of record shall be considered equivalent to the active practice of law within the meaning of this rule.(5) Good Standing in Foreign Jurisdiction. An applicant shall not be allowed to sit for the examination or be admitted to the Hawai'i bar during any period in which the applicant is suspended or disbarred or allowed to practice only with supervision in any other jurisdiction. For purposes of these rules a resignation in lieu of discipline is a disbarment.(c) Good Character and Fitness. (1) Standard of Character and Fitness. A lawyer should be one whose record of conduct justifies the trust of clients, adversaries, courts and others with respect to the professional duties owed to them. A record manifesting a deficiency in: (v) financial responsibility, (vi) professional responsibility, or (vii) respect for the law shall be grounds for denying an application.(2) Burden of Proving Character. The burden of proving good character and fitness is on the applicant.(3) Resolution of Character and Fitness Issues. The supreme court may refuse to allow an applicant to sit for an examination pending resolution of character or fitness issues and may refuse to release or consider examination results until character and fitness issues are resolved.(d) Investigation of Applications. The Board, any delegated committee, or designee shall investigate the applications, and may inquire into the information included in, and relevant to, each application. The Board may conduct proceedings necessary for a full and fair review of each application in accordance with its Rules of Procedure. The Clerk may issue subpoenas to compel the attendance of witnesses or the production of documents or other information in connection with such proceedings. An application may be held in abeyance by the Board pending the receipt of additional information to complete the investigation. If an applicant refuses or is unable to provide additional requested information, the recommendation to the Supreme Court shall be made on the basis of the existing information. The Board, any delegated committee, or designee shall report the results of the investigation and recommendations to the Supreme Court.(e) Review of Adverse Recommendations as to Good Character and Fitness. An applicant may petition the Supreme Court for review of an adverse recommendation that is based upon the applicant's failure to establish good character and fitness by filing with the Clerk a petition for review within twenty (20) days after receiving the adverse recommendation relating to character and fitness. (f) Non-Standard Testing Accommodations. An applicant may file a request for non-standard testing accommodations with the Board in accordance with the Board's Rules of Procedure.(g) Examinations. (1) Unless otherwise provided by this rule, an applicant shall be admitted to practice only after he or she has passed examinations that satisfy the supreme court that the applicant has the necessary legal and educational qualifications to practice law in this jurisdiction.(2) Hawai'i Bar Examinations will be held in the City and County of Honolulu, Hawai'i.(3) Unless otherwise directed by the supreme court, the Hawai'i Bar Examinations will be held during the week of the last Wednesday of February and July.(4) Within thirty (30) days after the results of the Hawai#i Bar Examination are filed by the Supreme Court, the Clerk may transmit a copy of examination scores to any unsuccessful applicant. However, there shall be no right of appeal as to the examination or its results. (5) Unless otherwise ordered by the supreme court, the files, records and proceedings of the Board are confidential and may not be disclosed except in furtherance of the Board's duties under this rule; provided that the Board may, without a court order, release files and records at the request of an attorney admission, or disciplinary authority or judicial selection authority of any jurisdiction in which the applicant is admitted to practice or seeks to practice and provided further that the names of applicants shall not be confidential. The Board or the court may post the names of all applicants, including former names and aliases, and seek comment about the applicants.(6) In addition to the Hawai#i Bar Examination administered by the Board, each applicant for examination and admission must also take and pass the Multistate Professional Responsibility Examination (MPRE). The MPRE must be taken and passed not earlier than two years before the Hawai#i Bar Examination and the MPRE score must be officially reported to the Board not later than one year after date of notification of passing the Hawai#i Bar Examination.(h) Child Support Enforcement. An applicant shall not be allowed to sit for a Hawai#i Bar Examination or be admitted to the Hawai#i Bar during any period in which the applicant has not complied with a court order for child support or in which Hawaii's Child Support Enforcement Agency or like body in another jurisdiction has certified the applicant is not in compliance with an order of child support or is not in compliance with a subpoena or warrant relating to a paternity or child support proceeding.(i) Student Loan Enforcement. An applicant shall not be allowed to sit for a Hawai#i Bar Examination or be admitted to the Hawai'i Bar during any period in which the applicant is not in compliance with an obligation under a student loan, student loan repayment contract, scholarship contract, or repayment plan.Amended effective 9/27/1996; further amended January 5, 1998, effective 1/1/1998; further amended August 14, 2003, and corrected September 29, 2003, effective 1/1/2004; further amended December 7, 2005, effective 1/1/2006; further amended August 30, 2010; effective 9/27/2010.