Baby Bar

or ba·by bar

[ bey-bee bahr ]

noun

, Informal.

1. in California, a one-day examination focusing on contract, criminal, and tort law that is administered to certain students at the end of their first year of studies in law, depending on where they are studying and what previous studies they have completed: formally called the First-Year Law Students’ Examination.

Word History and Origins

Origin of Baby Bar¹

First recorded in 1950–55

Example Sentences

Pop culture lovers will get a kick out of the pocket-size Baby Bar.

From Seattle Times

In December 2021, Kardashian passed California’s “baby bar” exam after four attempts.

From Los Angeles Times

Because she didn’t go to law school, the “Keeping Up With the Kardashians” alum is required to pass both the baby bar and the bar in order to become an attorney.

From Los Angeles Times

“The baby bar has, like, a 16% pass rate,” Kardashian told Harlow, who whispered, “Wow.”

From Los Angeles Times

Perhaps it was also meant to serve as a subtle reminder of Ms. Kardashian’s work with prison reform, the fact that she recently passed California’s baby bar exam and has ambitions of opening her own law firm.

From New York Times