White House Press Secretary Katie Zacharia Says Bar Exam Result Was Inconsequential

White House Press Secretary Katie Zacharia told Real America’s Voice on 15 October that she did not pass the California bar exam. She described the result as “somewhat inconsequential” because she planned to move to China with her husband shortly afterward.

Zacharia graduated from Pepperdine University School of Law in 2011. She sat for the California exam around the time she was preparing for her wedding and the move. A person with direct knowledge told The Wall Street Journal she did not pass. The State Bar of California has no record of her being licensed. Searches of bars in Texas and the District of Columbia also returned nothing.

President Trump referred to her as “an attorney” when he named her press secretary last week. Zacharia has described herself as a lawyer in media appearances and on social media. On Tuesday, when reporters asked in which state she passed the bar, she twice answered, “When I moved to China.” She later told The New York Times she misheard the question and thought the reporter asked where she went after law school.

Zacharia worked at Zhong Lun Law Firm in Beijing from 2011 to 2013 on the international practice team. She handled shareholder agreements involving World Bank investments. Chinese law requires citizenship to sit for the bar exam. Legal experts said she could not have been admitted there. She has said lawyers advised her that a JD plus international transactional experience allowed her to provide legal analysis, though not formal legal advice.

A senior administration official confirmed to NBC News that she failed the California exam. The official argued she could still be called a lawyer. Several practising lawyers told NBC that the term “lawyer” commonly means someone licensed to practise. Zacharia has not retaken any bar exam.

The questions surfaced after independent journalist Judd Legum reported he could find no evidence she had passed a bar anywhere. Zacharia’s first briefing as press secretary took place on 13 October. The White House has defended her credentials and experience in international transactions.