How to check a California lawyer's license and discipline record

Every lawyer who practises in California has a public record with the State Bar of California. Looking it up takes a few minutes and tells you things a firm's website cannot: whether the license is active right now, when the lawyer was admitted, and whether there is public discipline on record.

Where to look

Use the State Bar's own attorney search on calbar.ca.gov. Search by the lawyer's name or State Bar number. Many firms print the number on their site or letterhead; if you cannot find it, ask the firm for it. Use the State Bar site itself rather than a copy elsewhere: it is the official record.

Every firm in this directory has a State Bar profile linked (as of November 5, 2026): 252 firms so far. 252 firms also publish a State Bar number on their own site.

What the profile shows

• License status. "Active" means the lawyer may practise law in California. Other statuses, such as Inactive, Suspended, Disbarred, Resigned or Not eligible, mean they may not practise at the moment or at all. This directory lists a firm only when its lawyer's status reads Active.
• Admission date. When the lawyer was admitted to the State Bar. It tells you how long they have been licensed, not how many cases of your kind they have handled: ask them that directly.
• Public discipline. The profile lists public disciplinary and some administrative actions, often with documents you can open. Read the record itself; we only note whether something is on record and link to it.
• Certified specialty. In California, a lawyer may call themselves a "certified specialist" only when certified by the State Bar's Board of Legal Specialization or an accredited body (Rule of Professional Conduct 7.4). The profile shows any certification. A website calling a lawyer a "specialist" is not the same thing.

Check each lawyer, not only the firm

A firm is a group of individual lawyers, and each has their own record. Check the lawyer who will actually work on your matter. Where a firm names several attorneys, we link each one's profile we have checked.

Questions worth asking at the first meeting

• Who will handle my matter day to day, and how do I reach them?
• How is the fee calculated, who pays case costs, and what happens to costs if there is no recovery? California requires contingency fee agreements to be in writing (Business and Professions Code §6147): ask for a copy and read it before you sign.
• Do you handle this kind of case yourselves, or refer it to another firm?
• What deadlines apply to my situation? Ask this early: they can be short.

This is general information, not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Deadlines apply to these claims; ask a lawyer about yours. Find Malpractice Lawyers is a directory, not a law firm or lawyer referral service.