A law clerk in the Tulare County District Attorney’s office has become the youngest person to pass the California bar exam at the age of 17, the DA’s office announced Dec. 6.
Peter Park—who turned 18 last month after taking the exam in July—was sworn in on Dec. 5 as one of the state’s youngest practicing attorneys, the DA’s said.
“It was not easy, but it was worth it. It required discipline and strategy to pass the Bar, and I made it in the end,” Mr. Park said in a press release.
According to the DA’s office, research shows the previous record holder was 18 years old.
In an email to The Associated Press, the State Bar said that it couldn’t verify Mr. Park as the youngest to pass but commended his achievement nonetheless.
“Passing the California Bar exam is a major accomplishment at any age, and for someone as young as Mr. Park, it is quite an extraordinary feat and one worth celebrating,” Executive Director Leah Wilson told the news outlet.
Mr. Park began high school in 2019 at the age of 13 at Oxford Academy in Cypress, California. Simultaneously, he started a four-year juris doctor program at the Northwestern California University School of Law after successfully completing college-level proficiency exams, the DA’s office said.
He graduated from high school in 2021 after passing the California High School Proficiency Exam and focused on law school until his graduation earlier this year, the office said.
He became a law clerk at the DA’s office shortly after.
“I aspire to become a prosecutor because I am driven by a moral obligation to uphold liberty, equality, and justice in society. I admire how prosecutors keep our community safe and bring closure to victims,” Mr. Park said.
