(Subscription required) The California state bar has released the list of those who passed the February 2026 bar exam. Just under 31% of applicants who completed the two-day test in February passed, the lowest percentage since 2020.

With the Colorado River’s giant reservoirs declining toward critically low levels, negotiators for California, Arizona and Nevada announced a new water-saving plan for the next two years. Representatives of the three states said in a written statement Friday night that their plan aims to “stabilize the Colorado River through 2028.” It will require larger cuts in water use than they had pledged previously in talks with other states and the federal government.

(Subscription required) The pass rate on California's February bar exam plummeted to 30.8%, marking a dramatic return from last year's unusual score spike to the usual pattern of high failure rates on the Golden State's annual late winter test. The pass rate is the lowest recorded in the last six years and the second lowest mark in four decades, according to figures released Friday by the state bar.

(Subscription required) Former FTC attorney Faye C. Barnouw brings a consumer protection mindset and a photographer's eye to the bench, handling hundreds of misdemeanor cases each week while focusing on fairness, preparation and rehabilitation.